The Destiny Star
by Atomos Infinity
Summary: AU This is my first fanfic. Alvin and his friends set out on a great adventure with new friends to search for a legendary star that can grant immortality.
1. The Ritual

Atomos Infinity: This is my very first fanfic. So I hope you enjoy it. This is an AU tale of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Please tell me what you think

Disclaimer: I don't own the Chipmunks, the Chipettes or any other character you recognize from the television show.

**The Destiny Star**

_The Ritual_

Across the warm night sky, the stars, which appear before the world to shine their timeless illuminating beauty, were watching. As if they knew that something unnatural, something extraordinary was going to happen, they were watching with great expectation. As for the events that would take place, none of them knew what would happen…except for one. One star that stood out unmatched in its beauty shining brighter than all of them, knew of the events which would follow and its brightly shining light started to flicker as if…as if it were trembling...But why? This star…was well known to the world and the moment for which this star could affect the outcome of this planet was closely at hand.

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In a small village located deep within a dark forest, you could hear bells and cheers of celebration. The villagers danced and sang around a huge fire while they played instruments and songs. A village so lively in passion and so joyful in spirit had the ability to change this seemingly sinister forest into a wonderland of great emotions. The voices of children joined together in song as the adults clapped their hands and conversed together. However, the villagers were immediately silenced when a man raised his hand to quiet them down. He stood in the centre of the village just in front of the fire. His dark black hair swayed in the blowing winds. He looked so calm and stern, yet you could see a great love in his eyes. A love for all things innocent, a love for the world. And this man had gained the respect of, not only the villagers, but many other living things in the forest; plant and animals alike.

His nimbly caring eyes looked over to a group of twenty children no 'older than thirteen' who were sitting down in the centre of the celebration. You could tell by just one look that the entire celebration was somehow focused on them, for they were decorated in special clothing and were given all sorts of magnificent gifts. The quiet, bright-eyed children gazed at him with great fascination and respect.

The man looked down on them the same way a bird looks at its baby just before releasing it out into the world. So many emotions were bottled up in his heart as well as in the hearts of all the villagers. Pride. Love. Fear.

"It is time," he said sensing the winds of change that surrounded the peaceful village. Then he looked out to the villagers and drew in a deep breath in preparation for his speech. "The new generation is upon us and our time, like the ever burning sun just before the night arises, is fading. Now as our time of glory sets, a new time filled with youth and dreams and wonder arises. It is time indeed. It is time for our children to carry the burden of the future and receive the glory of ever-lasting life."

The crowd cheered for they knew it all and had waited for this moment for such a long time. How proud they were at the innocent and quiet group of children who sat still with their hearts filled with high hopes and some with a lust for adventure.

The man sensed their enthusiasm along with many other emotions like fear of the unknown and tension of the glory that awaited them. He waited for the village to calm down before he continued. "I will recite the mythic chant to begin the quest, but before I do this, I must see my boys."

Two chipmunks rose from the group of children. They walked towards him slowly, each with different views on the adventure that was forthcoming. "Logic and knowledge," were the views of the chipmunk wearing a blue turtleneck and big glasses that covered over his sparkling blue eyes. Yet the one thing that stood out the most from this innocent looking boy, the one thing that looked as if it didn't belong was the giant axe he carried on his back.

"Fear and kindness," were the views of the other chubby looking chipmunk. His soft and sensitive smile made him so cute, and his green eyes made him look really cheerful. Wearing a green, partially torn sleeveless shirt, he looked extremely uncomfortable carrying a bow and arrows which seemed to go against his loving nature.

Both chipmunks approached their father with great respect and bravery. He smiled and patted both of them on their heads. Then he looked around expectantly to see if there was another face in the crowd that should have rose and approached him, but there was none to be found. The man growled lightly under his breath. "I should have known he wouldn't come," the man whispered to himself.

At this moment, many didn't see a young chipette leave from the group of kids. "My children, I have chosen you to be the Guardians of the Gathering. You will lead and guard the group to reach their destination" he said as he placed his hands on both of their heads and then began to chant.

"The Gathering has been assembled, the leaders have been chosen. They accept the quest for the Destiny Star. They shall journey through any obstacles and pass through any perils to reach their destination. As the leader of our village I officially claim them worthy for the right to search for the destiny star. Our hearts will be with them as we ask you to grant them the power to survive any difficulties they may encounter. Powers of Fire, Wind and Water unite and enter the spirits of my boys so they can lead The Gathering to the Destiny Star" the man chanted as he raised his hands into the air.

The wind blew fiercely, but the fire that burned in the centre of the village didn't go out. Three lights came down from the sky and two of the lights had hit the two chipmunks. They began to illuminate with a strange glow. The older son started to glow with a blue light and the other son started to glow with a green light.

"I have given both of you, the power of the elements" the man said. He looked at his older son and put his hand on his shoulder. "Simon, leader of the Water."

"And Theodore, leader of the Wind" the man said to the younger son. He saw a red light heading in another direction. The man growled. He knew all too well where the last light was heading. He then looked at the villagers and smiled.

"The ritual is complete."

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Far away from the cheers and celebration, a thirteen-year-old chipmunk laid down on the branch of a high tree with his eyes closed. He was chewing some sort of barley as he rested with his hands behind his head. He wore red pants and a light red vest with golden lining along the sides. He also wore a red cap and T-shirt with a very familiar letter on it. What was very noticeable was the silver sword with a golden handle sheathed in his back.

The young chipette from before, who had left the group, approached him.

"Hey sleepyhead" she said with a smirk.

"…."

The chipette became annoyed at the chipmunks' evasion. She went and got a stone from a path and threw it at him. The stone hit his arm and woke him up with a start making him lose his balance and crashing down to the ground. It was quite a big drop, but he was fine just the same.

The chipmunk looked at the chipette as he tried to regain his focus. With a bit of blurry vision, he saw a cute chipette wearing a pink skirt and a light pink top. Her hair was brown and her eyes sparkled like the stars. The chipmunk started to chuckle as he shook his head.

"I should have known it was you" the chipmunk said as he checked if he had a bump on his head. Once he was convinced that he didn't, he looked back at the chipette.

"Alvin, you missed the ritual" the chipette said putting her hands on her hips.

"Darn it. And that was on my to do list too," Alvin joked.

"You're going to get in trouble."

"So what else is new? By tomorrow, it won't matter. Besides, this whole immortal stuff is just stupid, Brittany."

"But think about it, we will be able to feel no more pain…no suffering…" Brittany started before she began to cry. Alvin went and gave her a hug.

"Brittany, being immortal won't be an escape from your inner emotions. Their will always be pain and suffering. You can't escape it…I'm sorry, I never meant to…" he started.

"It's ok, Alvin. Your right… besides, my mother is always in my heart…actually that is the real reason why I'm willing to sacrifice everything to reach the Destiny Star. I can't stay under the protection of our village when my mother could be out there…somewhere." Brittany said as she looked into the sky.

Alvin smiled and nodded still in the embrace. They both looked into the sky. The Destiny Star was shining back at them as if to give them hope. Suddenly, a bright red light beam came from the sky and hit Alvin engulfing him in a bright red glow.

"I guess the ritual is over," Alvin said after a moment of silence as the glowing slowly faded from his body.

"Then we should head back" Brittany said wiping the tears from her eyes.

"It's time for me to face a very very angry father."

"Well I hope he really yells at you. You made me miss the ritual too!"

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When Alvin entered his house, he looked up and right in the doorway was the man who had performed the ritual glaring at him.

"ALVIN! Where were you?" the man roared.

"Calm down Dave, I went for a walk and lost track of time," Alvin said calmly.

"Alvin Seville! You missed the ritual!" Dave yelled.

"That was today? I guess I forgot" Alvin lied as he shrugged his shoulders. He could see that Dave was really enraged. At this time, Simon and Theodore came down from upstairs.

"I can't believe you could be so selfish! The ritual is not just for you, it's for the whole Gathering! It is meant for the children who you are meant to protect until they reach the star! What kind of confidence will they have in you now; now that you don't even attend the actual ritual? How can I trust you to take care of all the villagers' children, Alvin? How can they trust you? It just amazes me to see how selfish you can be! Please tell me, I'm curious, do you even know how important this is, do you even know anything about the Destiny Star? I have been telling you this for your whole life! I have repeated this day after day!"

"Here we go again" Alvin said as he sat on the couch with his brothers ready to hear the tale of the Destiny Star once again.

"Created before time itself, the Destiny Star was here to shine its light upon the Universe. Every thirty years, when a new generation is ready to take hold of the Destiny Star, it lands on a specific spot in the world. If one from our village touches the Destiny Star, it will give them immortality. Each generation has gone on the quest with their own guardian or guardians to protect them and now it is your turn. A guardian is a sacred duty which is bounded to protect the Gathering from all dangers. This moment is special…because you are the Millennium Generation. Your Gathering will probably face difficult challenges, but I have faith in you that you'll make it through, as long as you possess the will to believe that there is nothing you can't accomplish," Dave finished with a smile.

"Well Alvin…?" Simon asked.

"What choice do I have…?"

"…it's time for you boys to get to bed. Tomorrow's the big day," Dave said as he sent them to bed. The three chipmunks slowly went upstairs, did their regular routines and then went to sleep. Throughout the village, none were aware of a pair of eyes watching them through some clouds in the sky.

"Tomorrow will be a very big day" a voice said.

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To be continued….

Author's Notes: So tell me what ya think. Like it? Hate it? Let me know. I hope I have everyone in character. Don't worry, Simon and Theodore will have bigger parts in the chapters to come. Please Read and Review.


	2. A Warning

_A Warning_

"…_only death is clear in your future," _Simon woke up in a panic with a sweat covering his face. He panted heavily on his bed as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. That was the first nightmare he ever had. He laid on his bed shaking as he finally realized fear. He sighed heavily and looked over to his brothers who were sleeping in their beds to the left of him.

The room was practically empty. Everything that was important to him and his brothers were packed into three bags.

As Simon was about to close his eyes, he noticed a bright light seeping through the opening under the door. He guessed that Dave was still awake and if he was like him, Dave was really nervous about the journey too.

While grabbing his glasses after taking one last look at his brothers, he headed downstairs.

Dave was lying on the couch peacefully staring into the fire. There were many thoughts flourishing around his mind and many fears too. He was so lost in his thoughts that he practically jumped up when he heard Simon enter the room.

"Oh Simon…why are you still up?" he asked regaining his composure.

"I had a bad dream."

"You mean a nightmare?" Dave asked raising an eyebrow.

"…I think so. I just don't understand. I can't even remember it. Why did I have a nightmare…especially now? I mean…I've been concerned about the quest for some time now…but why…why a nightmare on the night before we leave?" Simon asked sitting next to his father. As he watched his father, he started to get the feeling there was something he wasn't telling him.

"Are you ok?" Simon asked.

"I will be…" Dave said nervously. After a constant struggle within himself, he finally decided to reveal the truth to the young chipmunk. "Simon, there's something I need to tell you…about the Destiny Star."

"What about it?" Simon asked trying his best to seem casual.

Dave sighed before he began. "I have been contemplating whether to tell you this or not. But you have to know so that you do not go into battle unprepared."

"Unprepared?"

"Every generation, we have sent off to find the Destiny Star…has always succeeded. But the reason that we succeeded was that no one knew about this quest. We went in secrecy and let no one find out."

"Well…why should they care, we are the only people who will turn immortal when we touch the Destiny Star" Simon said while yawning.

Dave looked around to see if anyone was around. The room was quiet and the fireplace crackling was the only sound that was heard. "Simon, what I'm going to tell you is really important, you must keep this secret" Dave whispered quietly.

"What?" Simon asked now really excited at what his father was going to tell him.

"Well…you see…that isn't entirely true. Although the Destiny Star does grant us immortality…it…also can do this for others. It had been thought to be secret so that chaos would not run wild in the world. You see, as Guardians of the Gathering, you deserve the right to know, but we keep it secret from the rest of the Gathering in order not to raise panic…we live in perfect harmony, we are peaceful and kind people, but if others got a hold of the Destiny Star…well, immortality is the one thing all creatures in life crave. This could destroy the world and put an end to us all one way or another. I'm telling you this because I have been having many nightmares involving your journey. You are the Millennium Generation. Something amazing will happen…good or bad. I just want you to know this and be prepared, because - I know I shouldn't say this, but…I fear for you. I'm sorry to say this, but I fear for the future and I fear for you," Dave finally finished.

Simon heard everything, but it took awhile for him to respond. Now he understood the nightmare. It was an omen…a warning. But about what, that was the problem.

Just then, they heard a small noise from the hallway. "Who's there?" Dave called out lightly. Alvin and Theodore entered the room slowly both with very different expressions. Theodore's expression was absolute terror, the journey he had feared for so long, now became an even more terrifying reality. Alvin, on the other hand, had mixed feelings. He had no idea if he was worried, excited, concerned…even uninterested. They had followed Simon downstairs and sat in the hallway listening to every word their father said.

"Boys, did you hear everything?" Dave asked. Alvin and Theodore nodded.

"We have to be really careful now. I don't know how things could get any worse. My hands are shaking," Theodore said as he sat down on the chair next to the couch and Dave gave him a soft hug.

Alvin just sat on the floor close to the fire. When he looked into the fire, he had a strange feeling in his heart. When he raised his hand higher, the flames rose. He was able to manipulate and control the fire just by the movements of his hands. A small smile was played upon his lips. "I think we can handle it," he whispered to himself.

"Be careful, Alvin. The power of fire can be really dangerous. You are not aware of the true powers that have been given to you. I can assure you that you will have the power necessary to complete your journey, I'm sure of that," Dave said to his sons confidently.

"That reminds me…" Dave started as he went over to a cabinet at the right side of the room. He then took out three necklaces that sparkled. "I should have given these to you at the ritual, but I want it to be just us when I gave it to you. These are your Star Guides (SG) for short. They will help you locate the general area of the Destiny Star. They send off radar waves that pick up only the scent of the Destiny Star, so they will guide you on the way" Dave said as he handed them each a necklace.

Theodore looked closely at the necklace. The star in the centre was golden and bright. "Wow, it's pretty."

"I'm glad you like them…I hope they will be useful. Ok boys back to bed" Dave said clapping his hands together. The three chipmunks headed for their room and went back to sleep.

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Alvin looked at his huge sword and swung it around a couple times. "Man, I'm good" he said to himself. All the other kids in The Gathering were saying goodbye to their families while Alvin sat outside his house.

Simon and Theodore came out of their house walking very close to Dave with their faces in bliss from their heart-warming goodbyes. They had an emotional moment in the house. As Dave came out, he saw Alvin sitting on the grass outside the house. He went up to Alvin and gave him a hug. Alvin was surprised for a moment to see Dave's reaction, but what was more surprising was that Alvin couldn't resist returning an especially tight hug to his father.

"Don't worry, we'll be back before you know it" Alvin said reassuringly.

"You will have to be careful. Never forget, I will always be proud of you" he said.

Everyone met at the centre of the village to say goodbye to The Gathering. Alvin, Simon and Theodore met up with Brittany and her two sisters. One was about the size of Theodore. She was a little chubby but had a warm smile. She wore a green skirt and a light green shirt. Her other sister was taller than Brittany. She wore a light blue shirt and a navy blue skirt. She wore glasses, but not as big as Simon's and like her other sisters, she was very pretty.

When Alvin saw Brittany, she was putting on make-up. He started chuckling. "It would take three hundred beauty salons to make you look beautiful."

"First of all, you have no right to talk to anyone about looks. I find my appearance important unlike you. Look what you're wearing. Talk about major fashion clash…especially that hideous outfit and you're your disgusting sword covered in dirt," Brittany said.

"For your information, this sword is made from pure silver, forged by dragon fire. It's probably the best sword in the world. I don't need to worry about looks. I have natural beauty and everyone will love me no matter what I wear," Alvin said taking out his sword and admiring it.

While Brittany and Alvin were arguing, Simon and Theodore went to talk to Brittany's sisters.

"Jeanette, you must see this book. I'm going to use it as my guide for the journey. It's probably the oldest book in our village. Dave gave it to me yesterday before the ritual"

"Wow Simon, what's it about?"

"This is a documentary about the stars done by the greatest philosopher Malix Tidalar. I figured we can use facts and written knowledge…rather than…following our instincts" Simon said to the older chipette as he looked over at Alvin with an irritated look.

"Great Simon, I'd love to read it. I brought a couple other books too," Jeanette said showing Simon some of her books on the stars.

"Hi Eleanor" Theodore said with a bright smile and a little blush on his soft, chubby cheeks, although he did not get a bright smile in return.

"Umm…Theodore, are you sure you can do this?" the young chipette asked the chubby chipmunk.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for as long as I've known you…you have never even put up a weapon. I guess I'm just worried about you. You're not someone who could be described as a warrior"

"….I know what you mean Eleanor, but it's not like there will be any problems. Like my dad said, no one knows about the Destiny Star. We'll be able to go, become immortal, and then come back just like that"

"I hope you're right…I just feel like something bad is going to happen."

"Don't worry Eleanor. I'll protect you."

Eleanor's eyes widened and then gave Theodore a big hug.

"Jeanette"

"Yes, Simon?"

"There was a dream I had last night…a nightmare"

"A nightmare? What about?"

"Well…" Simon was about to begin, but suddenly he was stopped by a cold breeze, the winds began to shift. Rain was pouring down heavily and thunder and lightning started crashing. This was a reckless storm and it appeared out of nowhere.

"Children…get behind me," Dave said as he stood in front of them sensing a problem.

Alvin, Simon and Theodore took out their weapons slowly and cautiously. The Gathering stood behind them. The children were trembling and holding onto each other for comfort. The villagers were quiet.

Theodore held his bow and arrow firmly. He tried hard to keep calm and focus, but despite the resistance, he began to tremble.

He started to shake even more when he saw a strange figure appear from the sky. He came down and landed on the ground softly. He wore a bronze suit of armour, his eyes were piercing red and his lips were twisted into a smile. Alvin could see the figure's eyes searching around like a hawk. It was like he was searching into his soul.

"Why have you come here!? State your purpose!" Dave ordered.

"I have come to meet my competition for the Destiny Star" he said in a low voice that sounded almost like a beast.

Simon's eyes widened. It was true. He knew about the Destiny Star search. Everyone grew quiet. The villagers didn't know what to say…what to feel. But Eleanor was the one who was scared the most. She held her sisters tightly wishing the man would just go away.

"But you can't…" Dave started.

"Save your lies. I have studied long and hard to find out about the Destiny Star. Once I touch it, your fate is sealed" the mysterious figure told them.

"You are no match for us. We can destroy you!" Dave yelled as a sword appeared in his right hand.

"But you won't. Now that I have announced my proclamation for the Destiny Star, you can't. And when I touch the star and become immortal, I will return and wipe out all of your kind" he looked at the three chipmunks that had taken out their weapons and were shaking.

"And there will be no one who can stop me…especially not children" he said as he began to laugh maniacally.

"YOU MONSTER!" Dave charged at the man with his sword, but he had disappeared.

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Everyone had stood quiet for a moment. Each to taking in what they had just witnessed. Dave looked at his three sons who were just devastated. He went over and gave all three of them a big hug.

"I'm sorry boys. For the first time in centuries, our kind has to face a competition for the Destiny Star. I'm...sorry" he said in a whisper.

They sat in silence for a while. Then Alvin looked up at the Destiny Star high in the sky. It continued to shine brightly. He smiled. "We're going to stop him" he said determined. Dave smiled and hugged them again.

"We will do what we are supposed to do, and protect The Gathering. Besides, it will take a while before the Destiny Star reaches the ground" Simon said as he returned his axe to his back.

Theodore had been quiet for this whole time. He should have known that they would have to face an obstacle. Now what could he do? Eleanor went up to him. "Theodore?"

"…."

"Are you sure you're up for this?" she asked putting her hand on his shoulder.

Theodore paused for a moment, and then he smiled and nodded. Alvin, Simon and Theodore went to the centre of the village and looked at all the children in The Gathering.

"No matter what happens, we will get you to the Destiny Star. I promise" Alvin said as he motioned them to follow him. The Gathering followed the three chipmunks as they began to walk out of the village. The villagers cheered as The Gathering left the village on a great adventure.

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To Be Continued….

Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Please Review


	3. A Lesson of Fire

_A Lesson of Fire_

"_The time is near…your end is near. Only death is clear in you future"_

Theodore was the one to wake up this time when he heard the voices in his nightmare. He had been sweating and breathing heavily. Who was talking to him? What did they want? He looked around at his companions all sleeping peacefully near the campfire. He looked closely at Eleanor as she seemed to be sleeping. A bright smile appeared on his face. Somehow, her beauty relaxed him, then he went back to sleep.

A few seconds later after Theodore closed his eyes, Eleanor opened hers. She looked at Theodore with great concern.

"Oh Theodore…" she sighed as she fell back into an uneasy sleep.

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With their guardians leading the way, The Gathering had gone four days without any problems. They had managed to leave the forest (that surrounded their village) by the third day and were travelling on an open grassy field. Alvin looked around at the surroundings. The afternoon breeze had just blown down on his face.

"I guess we can stay here for the night" Alvin said to The Gathering.

"Alvin, are you nuts? We'll be an open target for anyone!" Simon said to him.

"We haven't faced any problems for days, Simon. I don't think you have to worry" Alvin said putting a hand on his shoulder.

"With you Alvin, I always worry" Simon said with a sigh. Some of the other kids giggled at his remark.

"We're staying here for the night" Theodore told the others.

The other kids agreed and immediately took out their supplies. Brittany sat down beside Eleanor on a log. "There's one thing I don't get. No one in our world besides us, hasn't even tried to find out about the Destiny Star? How dumb could these people be?" Brittany asked. Eleanor put her finger over her mouth signalling her sister to be quiet.

"It's ok Eleanor…nobody's around" Jeanette said.

"The villages and kingdoms around here are separated…they have not been united. We are all isolated. Only a few travellers have gone, but because of the harsh and frightening surroundings and monsters…none of them are brave enough to leave" Simon said. "What I am so curious about is how that man found out about it. I remember him saying that he has study everything about the star, but there have been no records or books on it. It's impossible. The only book remotely close to theories on the star would be Malix Tidalar's book, but even that only tells about the stars surrounding the Destiny Star so it would have been impossible for him to have known.

"You really know a lot about this, huh Simon?" a young girl from The Gathering said coming up from behind him.

"I guess so…I make it my business to, Ashley. I find that it is very uncomfortable to head somewhere without being prepared."

"We live in a very dangerous world" Theodore sat down with no emotion. Eleanor was really worried about him. He was definitely not himself. She knew a lot was going through his mind, but she didn't know if she could get through to him.

"Theodore, is there anything I can do?"

"Not really, things are bad for us. There are monsters on this planet that could destroy us in an instant. What if we come up against a dragon, the immortal beast of fire…or even a sea serpent? I…just don't think we can win" Theodore said still emotionless.

Alvin suddenly saw a light flashing in the distance. "Did you guys see that?" Alvin asked them. The questioning look upon their face told him that they didn't.

"What did you see?" two other kids asked in unison.

Then, a figure appeared where the light had been. He motioned for Alvin to follow him.

"Umm…nothing. I'll be right back" Alvin said, but then he felt a hand grab onto his firmly.

"Alvin where are you going?" Simon asked as he released Alvin's hand from his grip.

"Don't worry Simon. I'll be fine."

"Alvin!"

"Don't worry!"

"Why do I even bother?" Simon said with a sigh.

"Hehe…I'll be back soon" Alvin said as he started off in the direction of the light figure.

"Be…careful" Brittany said to the chipmunk as he sped off.

When Alvin was off in the distance, Simon felt the ground shake. Thump! Thump! Thump! Simon slowly took out his axe. "Jeanette, Brittany…move everyone behind me. Now!" Simon yelled.

They did as they were told, keeping everyone in a safe distance. The noise was getting louder. Thump! Thump! Thump! Theodore took out his bow and placed an arrow in it. Then he aimed it in the direction that the noise was coming from, but he couldn't see any image. All they saw was a wavy, transparent pattern of a shape, but they couldn't see it clearly. "W…what do we do S…s..imon?" Theodore asked obviously scared.

"What else, protect The Gathering" Simon told him getting ready for battle.

The steps were clearly coming up to them. A huge mighty roar was heard and the steps came even louder. THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

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Alvin finally caught up to the figure of light. "Ok old man….why'd you call me here" Alvin asked.

The old man turned to face Alvin. He wore a grey cloak over his whole body and a hood to cover his whole face. All Alvin could see were his yellow eyes staring at him. This made him feel uneasy; he started to back away. "Be calm. I am not the enemy" the voice spoke. It seemed to be an old voice…but somehow quite soothing.

"I don't know who to trust out here, except my Gathering" Alvin said.

"There is a lot that you don't know. Your powers, the Destiny Star…but I am here to help you" the man spoke as he moved closer to Alvin.

"With what?"

"You'll see. For your first lesson…hold out your hands and place your fingers in a triangle formation."

"…." Alvin did what he was told, placing his second and third fingers as the sides and his thumbs as the base.

The man placed his furry hand over Alvin's. Suddenly, a small flame appeared above their hands. The man released his hand from Alvin's. The flame had dimmed down, but it was still there. "Wow" the young chipmunk marvelled at the small flame.

He started moving his hand in a circular motion. The fire started to form a spherical shape. Then it grew and grew until the fireball was as big as Alvin's head. With the snap of his fingers, the old man made the fireball disappear.

"What did you do that for?" Alvin asked a bit mad that his fireball had disappeared.

"I want you to save your energy. Over time, that fireball will grow and grow. It's amazing how everything starts so small, even the raging oceans were once small puddles, but with time and experience it turned into something great, as will you," he said. Then he lifted his hood and Alvin was face to face with an older chipmunk. His yellow eyes had the same glow, but his face seemed warm and his brown hair came down to his shoulders.

"Who are you?"

The chipmunk smiled gently. This smile reminded Alvin of his younger brother's smile. His soft smile…his innocence, but now it had seemed to have escaped from Theodore's body. "Oh no, I have to get back to the group. They're probably worried" Alvin said getting ready to leave.

"You must hurry, your friends are in trouble" the chipmunk said. Alvin nodded his head and took out his sword.

"Thanks…I guess."

"The honour is all mine, but remember this…. There are things in this world that go beyond your belief. There are forces way stronger than the Destiny Star at work here. You must be careful, because they are after The Gathering."

Alvin shuddered at the chipmunk's words, but nodded his head again. Then he headed back to the field where his brothers and The Gathering were.

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"Theodore!" Eleanor cried.

Theodore fell to the ground hard after being hit by an unseen image. Simon and Theodore were now fighting an almost hopeless battle with an invisible monster. Theodore had a little scrape on his knee. The Gathering was watching from a far distance. They were so terrified, but there was nothing they could do. They weren't strong enough, and that is what made them sad for the two brave chipmunks trying to protect them.

"Eleanor, calm down. They need our support" Jeanette said trying to hold Eleanor back from running to the hurt chipmunk.

"Theodore's hurt, he can't do this! I have to go to him! Please!" Eleanor pleaded while Jeanette and now Brittany were trying to hold her back.

Theodore got up slowly. He was still shaking, but something inside him forced him to move on. "S..s..simon, how do we fight something we can't even see?"

"No doubt there is magic involved. We have to be logical about this. Concentrate on the sound waves vibrating on the ground" Simon told his brother as he listened to the huge, powerful footsteps that the creature made.

He then took his axe and slashed the monster in the leg. The monster let out a mighty cry of pain. Then it looked at the chipmunk that had injured him. Suddenly, Simon had been knocked off his feet and slammed into the ground.

"We can't just watch this. We have to do something" Brittany said. Jeanette bit her lip to keep herself from crying. Just then, a figure sped by them and in the direction of the two fighting chipmunks.

"It's about time" Brittany said obviously annoyed.

Alvin appeared in the battle area. He helped Simon up, helped his baby brother and moved them to a safe distance away. The monster was unfortunately hot on their trail.

"You guys ok?"

"We'll be fine, but where did you head off to?" Simon asked.

Alvin was about to answer when he heard the huge footsteps coming his way. He turned around and saw a transparent image of a creature. He looked towards Simon and saw that Simon was really injured. He figured that Simon was the one doing most of the fighting.

"Ok Theodore, I'll need your help. You have to be perfect on this shot" Alvin said.

"….ok Alvin" his little brother answered.

The monster appeared to be getting closer. Alvin could feel the monster's hot and heavy breath against his fur. It was now or never. Alvin placed his fingers in the exact triangle formation he was shown by the older chipmunk before. He concentrated really hard and his star necklace started to glow as he sent a blaze of fire from his hands. This caught the monster off guard and soon he was completely lit on fire.

"AAARRRGH!" the monster roared.

The fire created an image of the monster visible to everyone. "Now Theodore!" Alvin shouted.

Theodore nodded his head a bit tensed, but he managed to get a clear aim. He shot his arrow straight through the monster's heart. After a brief moment, the monster was motionless lying on the ground.

Theodore sighed, but was still shaking. The monster turned into a shape of a Minotaur, a dreaded mythical monster with strong hairy legs and two ram-like horns on the top of his heads.

The minotaur had turned into some sort of black mist and then disappeared. Everyone stood quiet for a moment. Then Eleanor ran up to Theodore and gave him a big hug. The worry was definitely shown in her eyes.

"Is the minotaur…you know…dead?" a boy from The Gathering asked.

"I guess…it wasn't moving. Nice shot Theodore" Alvin said to his little brother.

Theodore didn't reply. He was lost in his thoughts, wondering how close he was to dying…how close all of them were. Eleanor kept him in her embrace never wanting to let go. Theodore didn't fight this. He just let himself be held by Eleanor. He found this to be comforting, and the more time they stayed in the embrace, the more Theodore wanted the hug to last even longer. Everyone went to see if Alvin and Simon were ok too.

"Alvin, how did you manage to control the fire from your hands?" Simon asked.

"You'll see soon, I'll teach it to you," Alvin said with a wink.

"Where do we go now?" a young chipette girl named Maggie asked.

"We better get moving, we definitely know it's not safe here."

"Why don't we ask the great and wise Simon" Alvin joked.

Simon pulled out a map that had been in his book. He looked over to where they were. "Hmm…it seems there is a mountain just ahead. We should be able to see it from here."

Everyone started searching for any specific landmark that could be identified as a mountain.

"I found it!" one child about the age of eight said. He pointed to the north to a small figure that looked like a mirage image of the top of a mountain. When they looked closer, it looked more and more real. "Ok, it should take us a day to get there if we leave now" Simon said.

"Let's go!" Alvin said to the others as they packed up and followed him. Theodore was still in Eleanor's arms. He slowly and regrettably pulled away and then looked into her eyes. "Eleanor, I know you're worried about me and I'm sorry…I'm worried to, but this is something I have to do. There is no point in running back. The only thing we can do is head forward. I just hope I'm strong enough to protect everyone" Theodore said as he began to follow the others with his head down.

"Theodore…."

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To Be Continued….

Author's Note: Sorry for the late update. Christmas is becoming wild. I had to rush and get everything. Don't worry, I'll try to get the next one up soon. And thanks for the reviews, I appreciate the comments.


	4. A Fairy Tale

_A Fairy Tale_

A small wind was formed in the hands of Theodore. He had a little smile when he moved his hands in a circular motion creating a spherical shape. He looked over to his oldest brother who was walking with Jeanette.

"Great job Theo" Alvin said while patting him on the head.

The Gathering had been walking for 3 hours. They kept the image of the mountain close in their sight. But before they could reach the mountain, they had to cross another forest. They were outside the forest, it looked very eerie and there was some sort of strange aura surrounding it.

"Well, no worries right?" Alvin said as he began to walk into the forest. Simon stopped him.

"Uhh…Alvin, I don't think that's such a good idea" Simon said.

"Why not?" Jeanette asked.

"According to Malix Tidalar's book, this is the forest of the fairies and pixies."

"Forest of the fairies and pixies? What are they?" one boy asked.

"Fairies are small magical people with wings that posses magical powers and are very mischievous and play practical jokes. Pixies are the mortal enemies of Fairies. You can say they are fairylike or elfin creatures, which are clever…playful sprites. Only a few people have made it out of the forest alive, and even then, their lives are forever changed."

Everyone looked at Simon with their jaws dropped wondering how he knew this. Simon smiled nervously. "What? I've read about it in Malix Tidalar's book."

"He must be really smart. What happened to him?" Maggie asked him.

Simon hung his head a little. He was always upset when this subject would come up. "Well…when he was on one of his expeditions 3 years ago, he had disappeared never to be seen again. Some have many myths stating he had been lost at sea. He was my…idol."

Theodore put a hand on Simon's shoulder. "I'm sorry Simon" Theodore said.

Simon wiped his tears and smiled as Jeanette gave him a soft hug. "I'm just glad that he recorded his information down in his books."

Alvin looked closely at the book, and then back to Simon. "Does he ever show his face?" Alvin asked him.

"Not even once. He was very famous, but he was very mysterious. No pictures or photographs…all we know was that he was a chipmunk" Simon said.

"Could he have found out about the Destiny Star?" Eleanor asked.

"Possibly, he was very smart" Simon replied.

"We have to go in the forest. There's no way around it" Brittany said. They all agreed and headed into the mysterious forest.

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The forest was definitely different from the outside. There were purple and orange trees surrounding every path they took, there was very little sound except for the calm wind and their footsteps on the wet ground. Eleanor looked at the beautiful trees and flowers.

Brittany looked at the flowers and then began to yawn.

"I'm so tired" she said wiping her eyes.

A few other kids just stopped in their tracks feeling sleepy as well. Theodore yawned too. Jeanette found this very strange. "Simon…maybe we should sleep here for the night."

Simon's eyes widened as he looked to Jeanette with a pale face. "Absolutely not! That is the worst thing you can do. You're practically offering yourself to the Fairies. Trust me, if we sleep today…we are not leaving this forest the next day" he told her.

"Calm down, Simon. It's just that everyone is so tired" Alvin told his brother.

Simon looked around at everyone's tired faces. The Gathering was ready to sleep at any moment. "Of course!!! Darn it!! I should have seen this coming" he said under his breath.

Alvin began to yawn and lay down on his back. Jeanette did this also. In just a few minutes, Simon was the only one awake. He stood in one spot refusing to go to sleep. After a few moments, he finally understood the reason why everyone had fallen asleep. He opened his book to a certain section and read it out loud.

"The Tesecera Flower's pollen has a sleeping effect. It can knock out a 3 hundred pound beast. Proceed very cautiously when around these plants. They are very rare."

Simon looked around. He began to hear voices giggling at a high pitch behind the trees that surrounded him. They were even higher than his voice. He could tell that there were a lot of them. "Alvin, wake up" he said shaking his younger brother.

"What?" Alvin snapped.

He then began to realize where he was. He heard the giggling voices around him and he looked at The Gathering asleep on the ground. He took out his sword and smiled. "Ready Simon?"

"Ready" Simon replied taking out his axe.

The giggling voices stopped and suddenly a harp was heard. The soft sound of the harp and the pollen of the flowers were too hard for them to bear. The two chipmunks fell asleep to the sound of the harp. After a while, the song of the harp stopped. A few small flying creatures came through the trees. They were small and green and had tiny wings. The leader was slightly bigger than the rest. Her blonde hair went down to her shoulders and was shining brightly.

"What should we do with them General?"

"Let's take them back to the castle. We'll show them what we do with trespassers?"

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Alvin woke up in a dark dungeon. He looked around and saw that everyone else was asleep. He shook his head knowing that they were in trouble. He sleepily went over to wake Theodore up.

"Hey Theodore?"

Theodore tossed and turned before waking up. He opened his green eyes to look at Alvin. Then he started to giggle quietly, and then he laughed out loud. Alvin was surprised at his brother's action. Theodore's loud laughter woke up everyone in the dungeon.

"I don't see what's so funny about this" Alvin said.

"Hahahaha..Alvin…what are you wearing..hahaha" Theodore managed to get out before falling to the floor with laughter.

Alvin finally looked at his clothing and saw he was wearing a purple dress. When everyone woke up, they immediately started to laugh out loud and roll around on the ground too. Alvin didn't really see what was so funny about this, but he started laughing along with the others. He couldn't control his laughter. Something was forcing him to laugh. Finally, he figured it out.

"It's those fairies. It must be," Alvin said through his laughter.

"How are they able to do this?" Brittany said through her laughter.

"It must be laughing gas…and I bet they are the ones that put this dress on me. When I get my hands on them, I'm gonna hahahaha!" Alvin couldn't stop laughing.

"Hey, where's Simon" Eleanor asked.

"They must have taken him" another girl from The Gathering said.

"I see you find being locked up amusing" a high-pitch voice from outside said.

"Get us out of here now!" Brittany said through her laughter.

"Patience, I do not like trespassers that enter our property" the voice said. Then the head fairy from before passed through the door like a ghost and entered the dungeon.

"Give me back my clothes you little munchkin!" Alvin yelled as he tried to grab the small fairy. She snapped her fingers and Alvin was sent flying to the wall. With his back against the wall, he was chained there with thick metal chains everyone was still laughing.

"Don't worry, we'll dispose of you all quickly, right after the Prince speaks with your leader" the fairy said. She waved her fingers and the laughing gas was taken from the air.

"Leader, what leader…? You mean Simon?" Eleanor asked.

"He's not the leader, I would never let him command me!" Alvin argued.

"Ha…now you're a real joke. You couldn't even withstand against our sleeping pollen and you can't even beat me. You are just a worthless dreamer" the fairy said with a smile. Alvin growled and glared at her maliciously. He was ready to tear her apart. "Don't worry, it'll all be over soon.

Everyone in the dungeon became so quiet as if she had just sentenced them all to death. Maybe she did. She looked around the room and smiled. "This dungeon really needs a fairy's touch." The fairy snapped her fingers creating flowers on the chains that chained Alvin to the wall. "There, that's better" she said as she went through the door and flew away.

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Simon woke up in another dark chamber. When he got up, he knew where he was. He was inside the left dungeon of the Fairy Kingdom. He looked around for his friends but couldn't find anyone and he was completely disarmed him.

"You are quite the talented leader" a voice said from behind him.

Simon turned around and was face to face with a boy fairy. He had long brown hair, but a cold smile. This caused Simon to back up a bit. He knew from his books that these fairies aren't fun to be around.

"You were able to withstand the pollen of the Tesecera Flowers. You are truly incredible. My name is…"

"Prince Billy Hiraos, Future King of the Fairy Kingdom" Simon finished his sentence for him.

"You are quite the scholar and very wise. Not a lot of people know about us. I think you can help us" Prince Billy said to Simon.

"First of all, not only do I know your name…I know all about you. I know how you torture innocent trespassers and how you kill trespassers" Simon said. "Wait a minute. …where is My Gathering. Did you do something to them?"

Simon was really mad and stood up over Prince Billy. "Don't worry, you're 'Gathering' is safe. They're just locked up in my dungeon. But if you refuse my request there a lot of idea in my mind which test the limits of all living things be for they die. There are so many ways in which pain exist that it is truly astonishing," Prince Billy said in a cold-hearted voice.

Simon decided to hear out his demand. He couldn't do anything anyway. "I would like you to join my forces to rage war against the Pixies" the fairy prince said. Simon was shocked at his request. He knew that the Pixies were the Fairies' mortal enemies and he knew that they were just as strong as the Fairies, but he also knew that the Pixies were kind. They were nicer compared to the heartless fairies, but what choice did he have?

"The Pixies have stood in my way long enough" Prince Billy said with a growl. "Are you with us or not."

"You have to let me discuss this with My Gathering before I make any final decisions."

"Very well. Come with me. But I'm warning you. You better make the right decision, or you all will pay the ultimate price."

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"Simon!" Jeanette ran up and gave him a hug. Theodore and the others did this as well.

Prince Billy giggled when he saw Alvin chained up with flower chains wearing a dress. Then he released him from the chains and returned his regular clothes to him.

"I will give you a moment…then you will give me your answer" Prince Billy said as he left.

"How is everyone?" Simon asked as he looked around the room.

"How do you think we are? We've been captured by little tiny people!" Alvin snapped.

Simon was a bit surprised at his younger brother's outburst. "What's wrong with him?" he asked his baby brother. Brittany put a hand on his shoulder.

"He's just mad because the fairy that came before you thought you were the leader of The Gathering…. It's an ego thing."

Alvin shook his head. "Whatever, let's just get out of here."

"How? They have completely guarded everything" a boy said from The Gathering.

"And they've taken our weapons, how are we suppose to…" Theodore started, but he cut himself off when he saw Alvin facing the wall. Alvin placed his fingers in the triangle formation and concentrated really hard.

"I should have known" Simon said rolling his eyes.

"Alright let's do the direct approach. As soon as I blast through the wall, everyone get ready to run."

Everyone nodded their heads to Alvin and got ready to run. A huge powerful flame had burst out of his hand and straight at the wall. The wall had remained unchanged. His flame didn't even phase it. When the fire had touched the wall, it set off an alarm. The alarm ran through the castle.

"Great job Alvin" Simon said sarcastically.

"Well if I had any help, maybe the magic would work! What do you suggest 'leader' " Alvin snapped at him. Simon sighed as he and Theodore stood beside their brother. The three chipmunks formed their fingers in a triangular formation and concentrated their energy. The powers of Fire, Wind and Water escaped from their hands heading towards the wall. Just before they hit the wall, they blended together creating a rainbow colour that completely destroyed the wall.

"Hey, get back here!" a few fairy guards called out to The Gathering as they escaped through the broken wall.

Prince Billy came in shortly after and saw The Gathering run away. He was really mad. "You have made a big mistake! You will never make it out here alive! You traitors!"

Those words haunted Simon, but he continued to run with his siblings and friends. The alarm ran through the whole Fairy Kingdom. Soon, all of the fairies would be chasing them.

"Alvin, what about our weapons?" Theodore asked running beside Eleanor. Alvin could tell that Theodore didn't feel safe without them. He was really scared about all of this. To Alvin, the fairies just annoyed him, but to Theodore, they actually scared him.

"We can't worry about that now, let's just get outta here!" Brittany said. The fairies were now flying after them, gathering magic and wands and getting ready to strike.

From a far distance, thousands of elfin, fairy-like creatures were gathering together look on at the Fairy Kingdom. "You're majesty, the fairies have their alarm on. They must be facing a crisis," one of the creatures said.

"Perfect, then it is the perfect time for an all out Magic War!"

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	5. Between Pixies and Fairies

_Between Pixies and Fairies_

"Your highness! The Pixie forces have been assembled and are heading to the Kingdom!" a messenger reported to Prince Billy in his throne room.

"Darn it! Forget about the prisoners. I want you to bring everyone together. Every single guard and every single fairy; we will fight the Pixies with everything we've got."

The messenger bowed to his prince and immediately left without hesitation. Prince Billy went to his bedroom and took out his wand. "If a magic war is what they want, then they shall get it."

The girl fairy from the dungeon entered Prince Billy's room and bowed. "You summoned me your highness?"

"Yes, I did. General Menorah, I want you to lead the forces on the attack. I want you to spare no one. No tricks or games, I want you to be as ruthless as you can be."

"As you wish my liege"

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The Gathering was running away from the Fairy Kingdom. Eleanor slowed down when she realized that the fairies weren't following them anymore. When she looked around, she found another group of fairies, but they looked a bit different. There were thousands of them and they looked like they were ready for a fight. The creatures were on a far off hill, looking at the Fairy Kingdom. They were just standing there like they were waiting for something to happen.

Theodore slowed down when he realized that Eleanor had stopped running. "Eleanor what's going on?" he asked her as the others stopped as well.

"We're not being followed anymore."

Theodore followed his friend's gaze and stopped at the same group of fairylike creatures. "What are those?" he asked.

Jeanette adjusted her glasses to see them more clearly.

"I think those are Pixies…right Simon?"

"Yeah, they are. In fact, Prince Billy said he was going to stage an all out magic war on the Pixies. He wanted me to join their forces," Simon replied.

Alvin's skin boiled. Jealousy overtook his body. It didn't make sense. Why would they want Simon? All Simon had done since he was a child was bury his nose in books and writing. He was the one who would usually go on adventures in the forests which surrounded the village. He was a better leader and he was obviously stronger than his older brother. He was better than Simon in everyway. These thoughts had been planted in his mind and the more he thought about it, the more it made him mad.

"Maybe that's why the fairies stopped following us, they are probably getting ready" Ashley, from The Gathering stated.

"Perfect, now we can go back to the castle and get our weapons."

"Alvin, are you out of your mind? They'll kill us if we go back," Simon said standing in Alvin's way.

"Look 'leader', they will be preoccupied getting ready for battle and they wouldn't expect us to go back into the castle after running away."

"Yeah, they wouldn't believe we were that stupid, but apparently someone in this group surpasses their expectations."

Alvin started growling at Simon and picked him up by his collar. Unlike you, I'm brave. I can stand up to anything those little tiny fairies put us through. They are barely three inches tall. I'm not a coward now get out of my way" Alvin snapped as he pushed Simon away.

"What's wrong with you Alvin?" Brittany asked with a glare.

"None of your business" he said as he stormed towards the Fairy Kingdom.

"We have to follow him" Theodore said as he raced up to catch up to his brother with The Gathering following close behind. Simon was really angry with Alvin. What could be going through his head? How dare he risk the life of the Gathering for his own selfish reasons? That was just like him too. You'd think he would've gain some responsibility. Now they were surely going to get in trouble.

The Gathering snuck through the streets of the Fairy Kingdom quietly. This was the first time they could actually see the magnificent kingdom. It had a strange glow to it as if the presence of magic was like a spirit flowing from house to house in a never-ending circle. The place was filled with small houses and trees with purple and orange leaves that shone like the summer sun.

"This is such a beautiful place. It's too bad that it had to be run by fairies" Brittany said in admiration of the kingdom's outer beauty.

As The Gathering crept through the streets, they quickly found out that the streets were empty. Not one fairy was there.

"They must be in the castle getting ready" Jeanette stated.

As they reached the castle, they saw a humongous group of about three thousand fairies lined up with wands in their hands and armour. Brittany watched them closely. They all shouted and cheered as the General Menorah walked up beside her prince.

Prince Billy stood there, with his cold eyes searching around the group of fairies. "It is time to end this rivalry and finish this once and for all. Fairies will rule over all Pixies."

"Hey everyone, I found away in," Alvin said as he crept through some bushes towards a huge crack in the side of the castle. They had entered the castle's cellar and there was a lot of mud and rats.

"Eeewwww! Gross!" Brittany shouted out.

Simon rolled his eyes. "Let's just go" he said as they passed through the dirty cellar.

"Alvin, you're going to pay for this."

Alvin just chuckled as they reached the door that led into the great hall. He was surprised that such little people could live in such a big castle.

"Wow, they must use magic for a lot of things here. If they didn't there would be no way they could lift up these stuff" a young boy in The Gathering said.

Surprisingly enough, there were absolutely no guards in the castle. The castle was completely empty. No maids, no workers, nothing.

They had looked through almost the whole castle until they heard a noise coming from the entrance. It looked like some of the fairies were coming back.

"Quick Alvin, we have to get outta here" Eleanor said.

"Wait there is just one more room" Alvin said as he broke through the door. There they were, Alvin's sword, Theodore's bow and arrows and Simon's axe.

"Hey! Trespassers!" a fairy guard yelled in a high pitch, squeaky voice.

As small as it was, the voices sent chills up their spine. A few fairy guards had spotted them and now we're chasing them. The Gathering sprinted down the halls of the castle.

Alvin, Simon and Theodore slowed down and let The Gathering pass them. "What are you doing?" Brittany asked.

"We'll stall them" Theodore said.

Alvin, Simon and Theodore turned around and stood face to face with the fairy warriors.

"Ready for a good old-fashion fairy pummelling?" Alvin asked his younger brother as he held onto his sword firmly.

"Alvin, maybe we should try that triple move that we did on the wall of the dungeon" Simon said.

"Great idea Simon" Theodore said.

Alvin growled, but obeyed. The three of them stood side by side and placed their fingers in a triangle formation. The fairies were powering up their wands ready to strike. At the same time they fired their beams from their wand, the powers of Fire, Water and Wind escaped from the three chipmunks' hands.

In the same rainbow pattern as before, the combine blast hit the fairies straight on and they were sent flying back into the wall. Unable to tell if they were dead or unconscious, the three chipmunks followed The Gathering.

From a far off distance, the head commander of the Pixie forces saw the giant rainbow blast in the air. He smiled and looked over to his king. "Your majesty, this is the perfect time to strike"

The King of the Pixies looked over to his forces and nodded his head. "The time has come. Let us move forward," he said. The Pixie forces cheered as they charged straight towards the Fairy Kingdom.

The Prince Billy looked to see the Pixie forces attacking. "Now men, attack!" he shouted as the fairies headed straight towards their enemy.

The Gathering was in a safe place in the forest far from the battling. Jeanette looked back at the two powerful enemies who were at war. There were magic fires and blasts flying everywhere. There were fairies and pixies alike that were dying and none of them could do a thing about it. The Gathering walked away from the magic war regrettably with their heads hung low. There was nothing they could do to stop the battle, and this is what hurt them the most. Pain and death were being inflicted right behind them and…they just…walked away.

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Within an hour, The Gathering left the enchanted forest absolutely quiet. They walked in silence for a while, until Simon broke the silence. "Look, the mountain is just over that hill."

"I can't help thinking what we did was wrong" Eleanor said bringing back the topic on the magic war.

"…I wish Miss Miller was here, she could easily tell us the right decision. She was always good with these things" Jeanette sighed.

"I know what you mean Jeanette, I really miss her" Brittany said as tears came from her eyes. Eleanor came to comfort her.

"Theodore…was this right? Somehow I think that letting someone die is…evil" she said harshly. Theodore sighed and looked into her eyes.

"I know. I'm sorry Eleanor. I wish we could help, but there was nothing we could do…. This was their decision. It wasn't our fight and, hopefully in the future we can realize that what we did…was for the best."

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Author's Note: I'm sorry that this chapter is a bit smaller than the others. I had to do this because the next part of my story is pretty big and I couldn't combine them. Thanks for the reviews; they have really kept me going. Please send more.


	6. Silence is Golden

_Silence is Golden_

"SIMON! You call this a mountain!" an angry Alvin yelled at his brother.

"I made a mistake. I guess when I saw Dragon Mountain on the map, I thought it would be a mountain rather than a volcano" Simon replied to his brother.

"Dragon Mountain!" everyone yelled in unison.

"I probably should have mentioned that before" Simon said.

"Forget it Simon" Alvin waved his brother off as he started grumbling away.

Jeanette looked on with the others as they scanned the giant volcano. They couldn't see the top, but they could feel that there was something waiting up there. The volcano was rocky and rough. This was a very bad situation because there were cliffs that surrounded the volcano.

"Hey wait, Alvin, do you have something to say to me?" Simon asked getting really annoyed at his younger brother's attitude against him lately.

"Yea, I do 'leader' " Alvin said now really enraged.

"Ok, wait guys" Theodore and a few of the other people tried to calm them down.

"Alvin, I can't believe you can hold that big of a grudge" Brittany said.

"Alvin, I'm sorry we are all not as perfect as you. I guess I just made a mistake" Simon said.

"Simon, I'm sick and tired of your sarcastic comments. I've had enough do you hear me! You're the one who expects to climb a volcano with dragons!"

"Just because it's called Dragon Mountain doesn't mean there has to be dragon's up there. Dragon's are super rare, only a few have ever seen any and only from a distance. Besides, how dare you tell me that I am the one putting the Gathering in danger!!! You were the idiot who decided to risk the Gathering's safety by going back into that monster castle just for our measly weapons!!!"

"Shut up!!! Just because you're older, you think you can boss me around! Well guess what Simon, I'm a better leader than you'll ever be! Dave should never had made you a guardian, we all know you could never protect anyone!!!" Alvin yelled out without even thinking.

Everyone was very surprised at his outburst, especially Simon. Alvin was storing all this up and at this moment he just exploded. If Simon had more time to think about this, he would have probably realized this, but he didn't. His emotions got the better of him. He couldn't hold his anger anymore. He held his hand in a fist and punched Alvin so hard that Alvin flew far back and landed on the ground.

Simon stood there for a moment surprised with all eyes on him…then he stormed off. Alvin laid on the ground in complete shock. He rubbed his cheek in disbelief as it finally sunk in what had happened.

Jeanette was about to go after him, but Theodore stopped her. "Simon needs sometime to think."

Brittany stomped up to the astonished Alvin who was still on the ground. "What is wrong with you? Simon is your brother! How could you talk to him like that?"

Alvin's shock had transformed into anger. "Just leave me alone!!" he said as he left in the opposite direction.

Theodore sighed and faced The Gathering. "…I guess we're sleeping here for the night" he said as he sat down and began to unpack. He would have gone after Alvin, but someone needed to stay and protect The Gathering. He just wished that somehow, his siblings would work this out.

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A young six-year-old girl had been running with a blue box in her hands through a dark forest. She had brown hair and light blue eyes wearing a purple skirt with an orange shirt. Also, around her neck was a necklace of shimmering silver pearls.

An evil gargoyle was chasing her. "Come on my dear, you can't run from me. Stop playing this hide and seek game and face me."

The girl had slipped and fallen to the ground. She panted heavily as she looked around. The woods were dark and the trees were dead. This was definitely a scary place to be in at night, especially for a 6-year-old. She returned to her feet and continued running for her life. She held the box tightly making sure that it could never fall out of her hands.

She couldn't run anymore, she fell on the ground in desperate need of air. She turned around to see the gargoyle's evil face, and then she fainted. "Game over" he said.

He was about to take the blue box from her hands when he heard the footsteps of a stranger. He did not want to be caught by anyone, so he decided to flee. But before he did, he looked at the little girl on the ground and growled. "We will meet again, and I will take that box away from you" he said as he flew into the sky.

Simon had been lost in his thoughts. He finally realized that Alvin didn't mean what he said. It was his ego; it was his jealousy. Alvin wasn't the person who thought through any of his actions or words. He knew his brother better than anyone; he should have known not to take his words too personally. After all, he was the first person who changed words into actions. He knew he should apologize.

When he decided to turn back, that was when he finally saw his surroundings. He had no idea how far he had run, but he knew that it must have been far. He was in a dark, depressing forest with dead trees and a bad smell.

When he really searched around the area, there he spotted a young girl lying on the ground. He immediately went to see if the girl was alright. He checked her pulse to see if she was dead. He was relieved to see that she wasn't. Taking out a bit of water from his pack, he sprinkled it over her face.

The young girl shook her head and then opened her eyes. She blinked a couple times then stared into Simon's eyes. She had big, beautiful, light blue eyes. "Umm…I'm glad to see you're ok. I'm Simon Seville. I saw you lying here unconscious; I guess you had just fainted."

She didn't say a word; she just continued to look at him. "Are you ok?" he asked. She still continued to look at him. This made Simon a bit uncomfortable. They sat in silence for a while. Then, after a careful analysis, Simon understood why she wasn't talking to him. She was deaf.

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Alvin sat on a log near a pond, not too far away from The Gathering's resting spot. He sat there burying his face in his hands thinking about what had just happened to him. He was definitely not mad at Simon for punching him. He knew he deserved it, but what was going on? Was he that selfish that he could yell at his own brother like that? He was so confused.

Brittany came to see how Alvin was doing. Alvin started skipping rocks on the pond. "This whole search for the Destiny Star has changed me…hasn't it?"

Brittany put a hand on his shoulder. "We've only just started. Besides you should have known that it would. It will change all of us" she said.

"If it means me fighting against my brothers, then I don't want to find it," Alvin said dryly.

"Well…I would agree with you if it wasn't for the hope that my mother might return; that's what keeps me going. The Destiny Star is only a symbol of what is to come at the end of our journey. It's the adventure that we are dealing with. It's the adventure in which I hope to find the truth."

"The truth about what?"

"About…well…everything."

"…"

"…Alvin…do you ever think about your mother?" Brittany asked.

"What's there to think about? She abandoned my brothers and me when we were young. I don't care about her, I've never cared about her!" Alvin shouted as he got up. Then he looked at Brittany who was a bit upset at what he had just said.

"Do you hate your mother?"

"I'm…just jealous. I guess that's the problem with me. Just like I was jealous of Simon; I'm always like this" Alvin said as he placed his hand on his forehead.

"Simon was right, I was selfish before. Protecting The Gathering to the Destiny Star is all I should concentrate on. I am a guardian, so I will honour my father's wishes and protect The Gathering with everything I've got. Nothing else matters to me. So I'll protect you" Alvin said with a smile.

"Are you trying that little romantic stuff with me?" Brittany asked raising an eyebrow.

"That depends if it's working."

"For now" Brittany said as she headed back to The Gathering.

Alvin held his star guide necklace in his hand wishing that as soon as this adventure was over, everything was going to be alright.

Simon sat down beside the deaf girl and smiled at her softly. Then he did some hand gestures. He used sign language to speak to the girl.

-A/N: These will be used for ( ) conversations in sign language-

(Hi, my name is Simon Seville) The girl's eyes widened and she smiled with an expression that could light up the deepest of the darkest of nights.

(Hello Simon, my name is Sapphire)

(That's a pretty name. What are you doing here in this place, especially by yourself?)

(A monster was chasing me. It wanted my blue box) the girl said as she showed Simon the box.

(What's in it?)

(I'm sorry, but I can't say. My grandmother told me not to tell anyone until I'm completely sure I can trust him or her)

(Where's your grandmother?)

(She's gone along with my whole village, by the monster that was chasing me…. All gone) the girl began to cry. Simon held her in his arms tightly and then released her to let her see his hand gestures.

(It's ok. You'll be fine. Come with me and join My Gathering. We'll protect you from the evil monsters)

(You really mean it?)

(Yea, I do)

(Thank you Simon) she said as she hugged him tightly. Simon smiled at her as they walked hand in hand back to The Gathering.

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An hour had passed and The Gathering was still waiting for Simon to return. Alvin had been pacing back and forth. He was really worried. "Alvin, stop walking around, you're making me dizzy" Theodore said putting a hand to his head.

"Oh, sorry Theo. I can't help it, though. Where in the world is Simon? Something must have happened to him. I'll go and…"

"Simon!" a nine-year-old girl from The Gathering shouted.

Alvin turned around to see Simon walking towards them with a girl asleep on his back. Alvin and the others immediately raced towards him.

"Where have you been!?" Theodore asked.

"I'm sorry for worrying you…I didn't realize how far I ran," Simon said. He turned and saw Alvin walking back to the campfire. Simon put Sapphire down and went to see his younger brother.

"Ummm…Alvin…"

"I'm sorry" they both said at the same time.

"It was my fault, I don't know why but I guess I…I was jealous. I'm…just sorry. You're my brother, that's what is important. I sort of forgot that," Alvin said. Simon smiled and gave his younger brother a hug. At that time, Sapphire woke up. She looked around at the unfamiliar faces and she began to get scared.

"Hi, my name's Eleanor. What's yours?" Eleanor asked with a smile, but she was a bit confused when the young girl reacted differently to her friendly comment.

"Her name is Sapphire, Eleanor. And she can't hear you, she's deaf" Simon said as he walked back to the group with Alvin. The girl started to smile when she saw Simon. She ran up to him and gave him a big hug.

"She's deaf?" Brittany asked.

(Simon, who are these people?) the young girl asked Simon.

(These people are My Gathering, the one I told you about) Simon replied.

The Gathering looked at Simon in complete shock. "Simon, I had know idea you knew sign language" Theodore said breaking the long silent state the group was in.

"Well, that's one of the languages I have studied in my spare time" Simon said.

"Ok, you are definitely one of the biggest nerds I have ever seen" Brittany said.

"Thank you for your kind words" Simon said sarcastically. Jeanette ran up to Simon, wrapped her arms around him, and kissed him softly on the lips. It was so all of a sudden. Everyone was surprised at this, especially Simon, but after a few seconds, he returned it.

"You never cease to amaze me Simon" Jeanette said after they pulled apart.

"Neither do you" Simon said to her.

One boy looked at Sapphire and then back to Simon.

"I think she's hungry" he said.

"Come to think of it, I'm a bit hungry too" Simon said feeling his stomach growl, but Alvin pulled him off to the side to discuss something with him. Theodore followed them too.

Eleanor brought Sapphire some food that she had made. Sapphire gave her a hug acknowledging a thank you, and then she took the food and started to eat it. "She is so cute" Eleanor said cooing over the little girl.

"Simon, what do you think you're doing?" Alvin asked him from a distance away from The Gathering.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, why are you bringing a stranger into our group? Where are her parents?"

"First of all, her parents have died. Everyone from her village had died because of some monster. It killed her whole village. I saw her unconscious on the ground" Simon said.

"That's a nice made-up story" Alvin said.

"She also told me, that the monster's piercing screech is what made her go deaf. He's coming back for her" Simon said harshly.

"Oh no, what are we going to do?" Theodore asked his brothers.

"We don't need to do anything. The monster is only after the girl, I'm not going to risk the safety of The Gathering on one girl. I can't. It's too dangerous," Alvin said coldly.

"I don't believe what you're saying, are you just going to leave her here, so she can die? Alvin, even you wouldn't be that heartless."

"Listen Simon, what is with you and good guys and bad guys? You can't expect me to believe that everyone in this world falls into those two categories. When you start picking sides, you end up like those pixies and fairies back there; in a giant war that has no meaning. I'm…we're here to do one thing and that is to protect The Gathering until they become immortal by the touch of the Destiny Star. Nothing else, no hero, no evil, just the Destiny Star"

"Alvin, you're being really cold right now. She's only six," Theodore said to him.

Alvin looked at Theodore for a moment and then sighed. "Fine, at the next place we get to, we'll drop her off there. Then she'll have to fix her problems by herself. Got it?"

Simon just stomped right passed him to The Gathering. Alvin looked back at his younger brother. Theodore just shook his head. "What do you want me to do, let her become immortal too?" Alvin asked waving his arms in the air.

"Oh Alvin…." Theodore said with a sigh as he went back to the campsite were The Gathering sat down eating. Alvin sighed and followed Theodore. He laid down and began eating some food, despite all the nasty glares he was getting from his older brother. Theodore wasn't use to this. Lately, all his brothers did was fight. He hoped things would get better soon because this was a time when they would have to be at their best, working together.

Sapphire had seemed to get along with everyone else in The Gathering. She had a bright smile, and everyone liked her a lot. Although Simon was the only one able to speak to her, all of them had a lot of fun. Alvin just looked up at them once or twice, and then he would put his cap back over his eyes.

"Well, everyone better get to sleep, because tomorrow…we go up the volcano."

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	7. Night of the Dragons

_Night of the Dragons_

The day was bright as the Gathering went up the trail of the volcano. The top of the volcano was covered in smoke and it was very hard to see. Also, ashes and soot rose from the top and were spraying down like rain. This pretty much assured everyone that this volcano was indeed active.

"Are you sure there isn't another way" a young girl in the Gathering asked.

Simon sighed, "We can always go around, but if we do…then we won't get to the Destiny Star in time."

Alvin looked back at the Chipettes who were talking to Sapphire. He shook his head and gave an annoyed grunt. Sapphire saw this expression of his and felt saddened inside.

The Gathering walked for about an hour up the volcano, then they started getting tired. Brittany sat on the ground exhausted.

"It's so hot and I'm so tired. Can't we take a break?" she asked trying to fan herself with her hand.

"I don't think this is the right place to stop, the volcano can erupt at anytime," Simon stated. "Maybe, we should continue on until we find an appropriate resting area."

Suddenly, a mighty roar was heard, causing everyone to stand perfectly still. After that, there was an eerie moment of silence.

"What was that?" Theodore asked.

"It sounded like…a dragon?" Jeanette said fearing her own words. As soon as Jeanette finished speaking, the clear day turned into night.

"No…no…it can't be. Dragons…they are rare. In all probable circumstances there is no chance that…," Simon started mumbling as he was rushing through Malix Tidialar's book

"What's going on?" Eleanor asked as just then, a huge fiery beast flew out of the smoke of the volcano and towards them.

"A dragon!" the Gathering screamed.

"Everyone, get into that cave in the volcano!" Simon pointed to a small opening in the volcano as he handed Jeanette his book.

The Gathering hid in the cave as Alvin, Simon and Theodore confronted the dragon.

"How do we beat a dragon if they are immortal?" Theodore asked his whole body encased by fear.

"We don't have to kill the dragon. There is more then one way to beat a dragon," Simon said as he tried to think.

The dragon came and shot out a deadly fire blast from its mouth. The three chipmunks dodged out of the way.

"Whatever you do, do not touch its fire. It'll kill you instantly," Alvin said as he took out his sword.

Theodore grabbed his bow and arrows. He shot an arrow directly hitting the dragon's belly, but was shocked when the arrow bounced right off not even leaving a scratch.

"We should have expected this" Alvin said to himself.

Simon put his hand together in triangle formation. Alvin and Theodore followed their brother's position. The powers of Fire, Water and Wind were released from their hands.

The blast hit the dragon directly in the chest, but the blast did not affect it at all. It sent out a mighty roar claiming it dominance throughout the skies.

"Alvin…Simon, I'm scared" Theodore said as his hands shook violently.

Suddenly, they heard more dragons roar. Then, ten more dragons came out of the smoke in the mountain. Alvin, Simon and Theodore stared into the eyes of eleven dragons in the night sky preparing for battle.

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The Gathering stood completely still. They did not dare to look outside under fear of what they might see. There was a long moment of silence, but everyone tensed up when they heard the roar of dragons. Eleanor hugged Brittany tightly.

"How do you think Theodore and the others are doing?" Ashley asked Brittany.

Brittany sighed and shook her head. "I honestly don't know."

Jeanette was trying her best to fight the tears that were trying to come out. She felt a tug on her dress and turned around to see Sapphire.

She was pointing to a small crack on the wall of the cave. Jeanette went up to examine it closer. There was some sort of symbol on it.

"This symbol…it looks familiar" she said. She took out Simon's Malix Tidalar book. When she opened the page where the symbol was shown, she gasped.

"Everyone! You must see this!" she said. The Gathering surrounded Jeanette as she showed them the page.

"Do you see this symbol? It matches the symbol just above that crack" she said.

"What does it mean?" Brittany asked.

"It's the symbol for the Dragon Slayers" Jeanette said with a smile.

The Gathering gasped. "Dragon…Slayers" Eleanor said slowly wiping the tears from her eyes.

They started to enter the small crack. There was a huge room with many pictures and weapons around the room. They saw a book in the centre of the room.

"This is amazing, we have to tell the Chipmunks" Brittany said.

Jeanette grabbed the book and flipped through the pages. She stopped at a page with an oddly shaped horn. She read the text out loud. "The Horn of Alexus holds the power to control the dragons on Dragon Mountain. One blow of this horn allows complete control of every dragon."

Eleanor gasped, "So…you mean, someone's doing this. Someone is control the dragons?"

"Of course, it must be that same person who wants to beat us to the Destiny Star. This is really bad" Brittany said.

"Wait…there is more. If a dragon is touched once, with any weapon in the Dragon Slayers' lair, they will return to normal" Jeanette said.

"We've got to tell them…if they are still alive" Brittany said as she hung her head.

Eleanor was the first to race out of the cave. Jeanette grabbed a sword, some arrows and an axe from the wall and followed her sister along with the others from the Gathering.

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Alvin fell to his knees. A dragon's fire had struck him. He cried out in pain as the fire started burning his chest. The Chipmunks had been battling with the dragons for about thirty minutes now.

A mysterious figure had been watching them from the clouds. "This is impossible, simple boys standing up to invincible monsters. I must find out their secrets. I will…"

"Alvin!" Theodore said as he ran up to him.

"Theodore, watch out!" Alvin yelled out as a dragon fired a fire blast aiming at them.

Theodore carried Alvin on his back and dodged the fire blast. "Thanks" Alvin said.

"Theodore! Are you ok?" Eleanor came with the others.

"What are you doing here?" Simon yelled as the dragons were attacking.

Jeanette gave the sword to Alvin, the arrows to Theodore and the axe to Simon. "We don't have time to explain Simon. Just use these weapons"

Simon grabbed the axe and got ready to strike. The dragon came in, but Simon attacked with the Dragon Slayer axe. The attack did not injure the dragon, but as soon as it made impact, the dragon retreated back into the volcano.

"It worked!" Maggie from the Gathering said with a smile.

Theodore quickly used his arrows towards five dragons. The five dragons had retreated as soon as they were hit.

Simon attacked four other dragons with his axe leaving only one final dragon. It was the first dragon they faced. He was about to send a powerful fire blast, but Alvin got up slowly, and in an instant, Alvin threw his sword, Simon threw his axe and Theodore fired his arrow at the dragon. The weapons collided with him at the same time. There was a moment of silence as they looked at the dragon staring back at them. Then, it flew back into the volcano.

Everything was quiet and the night had become the day once again. Everyone sighed in relief. Alvin fell to the ground; his chest was burning from the effects of the dragon fire. The Gathering went to Alvin, but it seemed as if he was only exhausted.

"I'll be fine…" he whispered.

Simon came up to his little brother and carried him on his back. "Alright, let's continue up the volcano"

"Simon...Thanks" Alvin said as he closed his eyes.

"Alvin…" Brittany said quietly.

Simon and Theodore began to walk forward, but Sapphire and Jeanette stopped them.

(We found another way of getting to the other side of the volcano) Sapphire gestured.

(We've been over this Sapphire; we can't go around the volcano. It will take too long)

(There's another way)

Simon turned to Jeanette. "What is Sapphire talking about? The only way we can get to the other side of the volcano is to go up"

"We can go through," Jeanette stated.

"Go through?" Theodore asked.

"Come with us" Ashley said.

Simon and Theodore followed the others to the area where they found the weapons.

"So you mean to tell me that, Malix Tidalar had been in this area and that someone used the 'Horn of Alexus' to call upon the dragons" Simon said after Jeanette explained what happened.

"Yes, and we believe it's the same person after the Destiny Star" Brittany said.

"This is becoming more dangerous. There is no telling what that mad man can do," Theodore said.

"And look, we can head through those doors. There is a tunnel that can lead us to the other side of Dragon Mountain."

"Great, we start right now," Simon said.

"Wait…what about Alvin?" Brittany asked as she stared at the sleeping chipmunk Simon was still carrying on his back. "He'll be fine."

After a few hours, they finally made it out of the tunnel. Theodore stretched out his arms and smiled. "Finally, fresh air."

Brittany, Jeanette, Sapphire and Simon looked at the Destiny Star. "It has gotten bigger, so that means it's getting closer to the ground," Brittany stated.

"We've got to get to the star fast, now that we know that there is someone out there that will do anything to touch it" Jeanette said.

"Not only do we have to reach it, we have to protect it, or else our world will be destroyed" Theodore stated with a slight tremble.

"Time's running out" Simon agreed.

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Author's Notes: Sorry for the late updates. I hope you like this chapter. Please read and review.


	8. Atlar Castle part 1

In this chapter the song the Chipmunks will sing is "Brand New Hero" by Reel Big Fish. I do not own this song.

_Atlar Castle (part one) _

Alvin slowly opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings. He was still being carried on the back of Simon. They were in a marshy type swamp. The air was very dense and warm. Alvin let out a huge yawn and wiped his eyes with his hand.

"It's about time you woke up" Simon said with a smile.

"It's hard to believe someone with your big mouth can sleep for that long"

"Then I guess you should be having two minute naps, huh Brittany" Alvin joked as Brittany glared at him.

Alvin got off of Simon's back and stretched out his arms. "So…what did I miss?"

"Several hours of walking...but, what I don't understand is that Alvin was hit with a dragon's fire. How could he have survived? It was said that no one has lived when hit perfectly with a dragon's flame" Jeanette said

"You're forgetting that Alvin was given the power of fire. He must have a tolerance to the fire," Simon answered.

"So, my body can withstand a dragon's fire? That's…amazing."

Theodore was really starting to worry about Eleanor. She had been so quiet ever since they left Dragon Mountain. Everytime he asked if she was ok, she just gave him a slight smile.

"Eleanor…are you sure you're ok. I really want to help you" Theodore asked.

Eleanor was trying real hard to stop the tears from flowing from her eyes, but she couldn't handle it anymore. She embraced Theodore in a tight hug. Theodore was shocked by this action.

"We're resting here tonight. I think we need to rest…and talk" Theodore said to the others. They all agreed as he returned Eleanor's hug.

"Alright, we'll stay" Simon said as Brittany and Jeanette went to Eleanor and comforted her.

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The Gathering camped out in a dryer part of the marsh. The night was dark and there were many stars in the sky. Simon sat on a small hill, not far from the Gathering. He sighed as he opened his book. Alvin came up to him.

"Hey…uh Simon, we need to talk" Alvin said.

"What do we need to talk about?" Simon asked without taking his eyes off his book.

"Look, I know I haven't been the best brother. I've been pretty much jealous and selfish…and after all I've done, you've still protected me. I want you to know, that…well…thank you," Alvin said. Simon smiled.

"You know, Dave made you, me and Theodore the leaders of the Gathering. We need to work together if we're going to survive the journey. If we work together, not even immortal dragons can stop us."

"You're right, Simon. When you put it that way, you're so right."

"Besides, I know you would have done the same thing," Simon said.

"Umm…of course I would" Alvin said as he started to scratch his head.

Simon raised an eyebrow, and then shook his head and smiled. "There can only be one Alvin," he said as he patted his brother on the back.

"Umm look Simon…I still don't trust Sapphire, but since you do…I'll try to get along…you know" Alvin said.

"Thanks" Simon said as they headed back.

Theodore took Eleanor away from the Gathering. They went to an area with a small patch of grass. They sat there looking at the sky. "So do you want to tell me what's wrong?" he asked.

"Theodore, can you promise me that you will not die before we reach the Destiny Star?" Eleanor asked she looked into his eyes.

Theodore turned away from her. Now he understood why Eleanor was so sad. "I'm sorry…I can't"

Eleanor looked back at the sky and sighed. "Theodore…I can't keep going like this. I remember how horrible it felt when my mother died... I could never handle that pain again, especially if it was towards you."

"I won't die Eleanor…I can't. After all we've been through, I don't think I can afford to die. I'm here to protect you, and that is what I'll do" Theodore said.

"Theodore, I can't lose you. After everything we've been through…I can't lose you. I…lo..love you!" Eleanor said looking into Theodore's eyes with great determination.

Theodore felt numb all over his body. His mind was in a complete state of shock. Eleanor just said she loved him…what should he do? There was a long moment of silence. Theodore slowly wrapped his arms around her for comfort, "I…love you too."

Eleanor smiled, she felt safe. "I won't die, Eleanor. I promise" Theodore said softly. They stayed in their embrace until the sun rose.

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Alvin and Simon finished packing the supplies. They looked at each other and smiled.

"So, are we ready to go?" a young boy in the gathering asked.

"We're just waiting for…Theodore! Where have you been?" Alvin asked as he saw Theodore coming out of the bushes holding Eleanor's hand.

"Is there something we're missing" Brittany said with a little smile towards Eleanor.

Eleanor and Theodore blushed. Alvin and Simon both rolled their eyes skyward as Brittany and Jeanette started smothering them with romantic type questions.

"If cupid's helpers are finished, we can go," Simon said.

Suddenly, they all heard powerfully intense roars. "Everyone…stay behind us" Alvin said as he, Simon and Theodore took out their weapons.

Simon looked very closely and could faintly see a bunch of shadowy figures heading their way. When he got a close enough glance, he saw that they were men carrying huge bags. He lowered his axe, but when he saw what was behind them, he raised his weapon again. There was a group of giant trolls racing through the forest. They held giant clubs and they whisked through the forest with great speed like gorillas.

Simon turned to Alvin. "We have to help those men," he said.

Alvin saw what the men were running from and then turned to Simon. "Ok, let's go."

Alvin, Simon and Theodore rushed towards the giant trolls, "Simon, do you have any ideas?" Theodore asked.

"Just one, follow me" he said.

The trolls raced after the men with bags until the men reached a dead end. With huge smiles on their faces, the trolls slowly approached the men. Suddenly, a blinding light flashed into their eyes. They didn't know what was going on. The men were astonished when they saw the trolls shielding their eyes. The trolls ran away trying to regain their sight.

The men with bags cheered as their enemies ran off into the distance. "This must be a miracle," one of the men said.

"Not far from the truth" Alvin said lying on a tree branch holding a mirror in his hand. On the trees beside him, Simon and Theodore stood there waving.

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"I can't tell you how grateful we are," the leader of the group said once The Gathering caught up with Alvin, Simon and Theodore.

"Why were those trolls after you?" Theodore asked.

"Umm…I…don't know…anyway, I would like to repay you somehow…. Why don't we go to the castle? I'm sure his Majesty would find away," the man said.

"That's ok, we are actually on a busy schedule," Simon started.

"Did you say his Majesty? As in royalty?" Alvin interrupted with a smile on his face.

Theodore sighed, "Here we go again."

The Gathering followed the group of men to a cliff. There was nothing but open seas. "Where are we going?" Brittany asked the leader.

The leader turned to the others and smiled. "Do you have faith?" he asked as he started walking off the cliff.

"What are you doing!" they yelled as he disappeared.

"What happened?" Alvin asked.

"There must be some sort of portal," Simon said with a hand to his chin.

"You are correct. You must cross a portal to enter the royal castle," one of the men with bags said as he and the other men raced through the portal.

Theodore turned to the others. "Ready?" he asked.

Everyone nodded and in a split second, The Gathering passed through the portal. They ended up in a strange castle surrounded by gold linen and many pictures.

"Where are we?" Alvin asked.

"Welcome to Atlar Castle, I am Sir Alevi Thaon, master knight of the castle" the leader said.

"My name is Alvin Seville and my brothers Simon and Theodore. We are the guardians of our Gathering who…travel the world" Alvin said quickly covering up his words.

"Travelling the world…a brave venture especially during these times. I must thank you with the highest honour," Alevi said.

"To whom must we thank in the highest honour?" a royal figure came out.

Judging by the way everyone was bowing and the crown on his head, Alvin guessed that this was the king.

"Who are these new visitors?" the King asked.

"Your majesty, these newcomers helped us on the troll…mission" Sir Alevi said with a bow and a slight smile.

"Well, you must join us in our feast. A royal feast and celebration on our victorious mission" the King said.

"Thank you your Majesty, and as a representative of our Gathering, I, Alvin Seville would like to say that the honour is all ours" Alvin said with a smug look.

The King began to laugh. "Well…thank you for your kind words, now my men shall take you to your rooms. You can have as many rooms as you wish. Please, enjoy your stay" he said as he left.

As the Gathering relaxed in their rooms, Simon passed through the halls. He started analyzing the structure of the walls. They looked very mysterious, like bricks except they felt soft and yet, it was strong enough to support everything in the castle. As he began touching the walls, Jeanette caught up with him. "What are you thinking about Simon?"

"There is something very strange about this place. It's like this whole castle is its own dimension. These walls seal up the castle's dimension and the door that we passed through at the beginning…was its only entrance" Simon explained.

"Is that it?" she asked.

"No…not really. I've been checking in my book and by the way these walls have been acting…Tidalar explains that the dimension could be falling apart. There is something wrong with the dimensional rift. It's unstable and it seems that now that we have entered this dimension, the forces are unbalanced which can cause it to collapse at any minute. The whole dimension could cease to exist in less than a minute," Simon said to Jeanette.

"That's only a theory, right Simon?" she asked the smart chipmunk.

"I guess…but it's a very accurate theory" he replied.

Jeanette sighed, "Let's just hope your theory is incorrect."

"…. We should probably get dressed for the celebration" Simon said as he headed back to his room.

Jeanette nodded and followed him.

Time quickly passed and soon, it was time for the royal feast. There were giant dishes of chicken, turkey and other full course meals. Everyone ate throughout the night. Then there was celebrations and dancing.

Sapphire drifted away from the party. She started walking through the dark halls of the castle looking for the washroom. Then she saw a room with a bright light. She went and saw Sir Alevi's men opening the bags they were carrying before. They looked a lot more different than before. They had dark evil eyes and an evil sinister smile as they raised the gold in triumph. Sapphire was very shocked. She started running as fast as she could away from the monsters.

She reached the celebration chamber when everyone was enjoying themselves. She decided to keep this secret silent until she was alone with Simon.

Alvin looked at the people who were dancing and how much they were enjoying themselves. He smiled remembering a time when he and his brother were the source of the dancing and enjoyment.

He went up to Simon and Theodore and tapped them on the shoulder. "Simon…I have an idea."

"...to get us in trouble" Simon finished his sentence.

"Don't worry…I just think that it's time to show everyone the true Chipmunks. I know we promised each other that we wouldn't do this again…but this has me in the…you know…mood," he said with a smile.

Simon and Theodore looked at each other and smiled.

"Hey, where is Alvin" Brittany asked.

Suddenly, the music stopped. The lights were turned off and a spotlight was shining on three familiar chipmunks. Alvin had a guitar, Simon was on the piano and Theodore was on the drums.

"Everyone, I would like to introduce you to…Alvin and the Chipmunks!" an announcer said. Everyone cheered as the music started.

Theodore:

_I've got big dreams but no self-esteem, you know_

_I'd reach for the stars but I can't find my arms_

Simon:

_All this time we've accomplished so much _

_Why can't I believe, why can't I just feel love?_

Alvin + Theodore:

_Oh Oh_

Altogether:

_Going away _

_Leaving today _

_You've gotta find a brand new hero _

_Going away _

_Leaving today _

_You've gotta find a brand new hero_

Alvin:

_I let you down when you're not around you know _

_I can't be trusted with anything_

Simon:

_All this time we've wanted so much, _

_to just belong why can't we just feel love?_

Alvin + Theodore:

_Oh Oh_

Altogether:

_Going away _

_Leaving today _

_You've gotta find a brand new hero_

_Going away _

_Leaving today _

_You've gotta find a brand new hero_

_What will they say? _

_When I've gone away _

_Gotta find a brand new hero_

Alvin:

_Always talking but I never say a lot, _

_And I'll blow it if I get another shot_

Theodore + Simon:

_Cause it seems like no matter what I've got _

_Feels like your something I feel like I'm nothing_

Altogether:

_Going away _

_Leaving today _

_You've gotta find a brand new hero_

_Going away _

_Leaving today _

_You've gotta find a brand new hero_

_What will they say? _

_When I've gone away _

_Gotta find a brand new herooo_

_Brand New Herooo_

_Brand New Herooo_

_Brand New Herooo_

Everyone cheered like crazy as The Chipmunks finished their song. Everyone was amazed at their singing talent. The three brothers bowed to their audience as they were given a standing ovation. Alvin went to the crowd and was taking all the fame and glory. "Thank you! Thank you! I deserve your applause, I was amazing."

Simon was getting annoyed. "Alvin, it's not always about you" he said.

"Simon, you're just jealous 'cause everyone loves me" Alvin argued.

"Hey come on guys, this is the reason why we decided never to sing. Your jealousy is holding us back. Come on, don't fall back into old patterns" Theodore said.

"Yea, I guess you're right" Simon sighed. He saw Sapphire signalling him to come over. She looked scared so he went to her quickly.

(Sapphire, are you okay?) he asked.

(Simon, these people are not who you think they are) she said.

(What do you mean?) Simon asked.

(Follow me) she said.

Simon followed her through the dark halls of the castle to the group of monsters that were cheering in victory at the gold they had taken. "Those dumb trolls, they do not have the brain power to hold onto this gold. Now, we have it" one of the monsters said.

(So, they were the thieves. I can't believe we were so stupid. We have to get out of the castle; the whole Gathering is in danger. I'm sorry for the trolls)

(What do we do Simon?) Sapphire asked.

(We'll wait until nightfall. Then we will take the gold and give it back to the trolls…it's the least we can do)

Sapphire turned to him and agreed with his plan. They both headed back to the celebration secretly telling everyone about their plan.

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The Gathering creped through the dark halls of the castle in the night and entered the room where all the gold was placed.

"Something's very odd, there is no one guarding the treasure" Jeanette said.

"That's not important right now. We have to hurry" Theodore said as they quickly carried out all the bags. As soon as they were about to leave the King of Atlar Castle and his knights interrupted them.

"We're not thinking of leaving, are we?" the King asked with a sadistic smile.

"We're taking this gold back to the trolls" Alvin said firmly.

Suddenly, the King transformed. His eyes turned darker and sharper, his teeth turned into fangs and his smile turned freakishly evil. He completely changed into a giant monster "Welcome to your doom" he said in a deep voice as the evil knights turned into monsters.

Alvin, Simon and Theodore stood side by side and placed their fingers in a triangle formation and the powers of Fire, Water and Wind escaped from the three chipmunks' hands. The rainbow blast caused an escape area through the walls. This caused a greater unbalanced force in the dimensional rift. The castle began to crumble.

The Gathering ran towards the portal at the entrance of the castle. "Whatever you do, do not let them escape!" the King yelled. The Gathering ran with all their might. "Everyone listen, judging by the dimensional rift, the portal can close up at anytime" Jeanette said.

"Everyone, run faster" Alvin said to the Gathering as over a hundred monsters were chasing them. The Gathering raced down the halls of the castle. The portal was in sight. Suddenly, Sapphire's mysterious blue box dropped. She turned back and went to retrieve it.

"Sapphire!" Simon yelled.

The Alevi monster was about to reach her. It extended its giant claws and was about to thrust down, but Alvin took his sword out and blocked the attack. Sapphire was amazed at what Alvin did.

Alvin smiled at her and motioned for her to go. Everyone was passing through the portal. Sapphire just crossed. Simon and Alvin were the only ones left. Simon was just at the portal, but he turned back to see Alvin.

"Go Simon, I'll catch up" Alvin said as he held off Alevi and his knights.

Simon nodded and passed through the portal. The castle was just about to collapse in a few seconds. Alvin turned around to face the monsters. "If you want to get through this portal, you'll have to go through me."

Simon passed and then turned back to the portal to see if his brother was coming through. Everything stood still as the portal closed.

The Gathering fell silent as one of their own, was lost forever. Simon's tears ran down his eyes as he slammed his fists continuously on the closed portal. "ALVIN!"

"Alvin…it can't be" Brittany said through tears. Simon fell to his knees.

"No…NO!"

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TO BE CONTINUED….

A/N this is an official to be continued. I hope you liked this chapter. It was a bit longer than I expected, but I hope it was good. I'm not sure if this is how you are suppose to put a song on I hope I did it right.

Until next time


	9. Atlar Castle part 2

_Atlar Castle (part two) _

"Alvin…it can't be" Theodore said through tears as he fell to his knees.

Simon slammed his fists on the ground. "He was right beside. He was right beside me! How could I let him slip away…why did I go first!? What was I thinking!? This is all my fault!" he screamed through tears.

Jeanette went up to him to comfort him. Eleanor did the same thing to Brittany and Theodore. Theodore was trembling. His hands were cold and his eyes were lifeless. This really scared Eleanor.

"What do we do now?" Eleanor asked quietly. There was a very long moment of silence.

"We have to take the gold back to the trolls" a boy named Richie in the Gathering said.

"You guys…go. Please…just…let.. me stay here," Theodore stuttered out. There was still hope in the young chipmunk's mind that his older brother would jump out of the closed portal.

"Me too" Simon squeaked out.

"Jeanette, Eleanor…you guys go with the Gathering for now. We'll stay" Theodore said as he wrapped his arms around himself. He knew that Brittany would not have the strength to get up and leave so he didn't bother trying to ask her to go.

As the Gathering started to leave, they didn't see that Sapphire stayed with Simon, Theodore and Brittany.

Eleanor and Jeanette walked through the woods with the Gathering. They were extremely quiet; it was like the whole forest was silent. Deep in their hearts, they knew that Simon and Theodore were directly disobeying their father's command of staying with the Gathering, but when they saw their faces…it reminded them of how they felt when their mother died.

This made the walk through the forest more eerie. There were a few constant whispers throughout the Gathering, but not a lot. They reached a dirty swamp with a disgusting smell. "Hello…? Is anyone here?" Eleanor asked.

Suddenly, giant trolls had burst out of the swamp. Their eyes were dark yellow and their faces full of sludge and wrinkles. They walked closer to The Gathering.

Jeanette backed up again when she saw their faces. "They don't seem friendly."

"Give us gold or you die," the main troll growled viciously as he emerged from the tribe.

"We have come to bring you back your gold?" Jeanette said.

They slowly walked up to the Gathering slowly. "But, you not trolls. We do not trust others how can we trust you. We should kill you, then you won't betray us."

"Please, you know we aren't the people who stole your gold, but we are here ready to give it back. Will you kill us for trying to do the right thing?" Eleanor asked it. The troll was silent for a moment.

"You not thief?" the troll asked.

"We are not like the people who stole your gold…we are good" Jeanette replied.

"…good?"

Eleanor nodded.

"Good…come with Ethnar" the troll said as he motioned them towards the swamp.

"Uhh…should we go?" Eleanor asked.

Jeanette followed the troll without hesitation. While holding her breath, she put her feet in the dirty water. Then she saw the troll dive right underneath the muddy water.

She took a deep breath and was about to dive beneath the water, but just before she did, the troll rose from the water with an object in its hand.

"This for you" it said as it handed the object to Jeanette. The troll then went back to the swamp with the bags of gold. Eleanor waved back.

"Bye" she said as the trolls disappeared into the swamp.

"What is this?" Jeanette asked.

"It seems to be some kind of flute," Ashley said.

"Hmm…maybe Simon's book knows about it" Eleanor said.

Jeanette took out Simon's book and skimmed through the pages. She found the page where the flute was shown. "It's here. It's called the Flute of Atlantis. When you are near the ocean…I can't finish the sentence, the page is ripped, and I don't know what happens."

"Well the trolls must have given us this flute for a reason. For now, we should go back to Theodore and the others" Eleanor said as her voice turned sad.

"….You're right, let's go."

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Simon, Theodore and Brittany stayed silent for the longest time. Sapphire looked on with great fear. She had never seen them like this. They looked so…empty. She went up and sat beside them. She sighed and began to hug her legs.

"I'm…scared. I don't want to do this anymore. I just want to see my brother. I just want to see Alvin," Theodore kept saying repeatedly to himself.

"If only I could have protected him. I was supposed to protect him. It's all my fault. My brother is gone and it's all my fault," Simon said repeatedly to himself.

'Not only have I lost Miss Miller, I have lost Alvin too. I told him I would not be able to handle losing anymore people close to me, and he still left me alone. Alvin, where are you? Why did you do this to me? Please, don't leave me alone. Please don't leave me' Brittany thought. She was crying out in her mind but outside her head, she was motionless.

Sapphire figured out that it was about time to help Simon. She couldn't stand to see them like this. She went to tap Simon's shoulder.

(Simon…it was my entire fault that Alvin was trapped in Atlar Castle.)

(It wasn't your fault Sapphire. Alvin saved you…he wanted you safe. I know you think that Alvin didn't like you, but Alvin had a nice heart. He may have acted mean and selfish, but he is always there when you…really need him.) Simon gestured with a sigh. Sapphire looked at her blue box and then back to Simon.

(Simon…remember when we met, you first asked me what was in this box and I told you that I couldn't say. Well…I'm going to tell you now,) she said as she bit her bottom lip.

Simon looked at her confused. 'Why would she tell me now?' he thought. Sapphire opened the box and then she and Simon looked into the box. There was some sort of dark hole.

(What is that, Sapphire?)

(It's a warp hole.) she answered. Simon's eyes widened.

(My grandmother didn't want me to ever use this…but Alvin saved my life. It's a long shot, but I've got to try) Sapphire said.

(What does this do?) Simon asked.

(It can do a lot of things. The warp hole can suck a person into a place where there is no time or space. A world of void and darkness. That's the worst that can happen. But when it is pointed up in an area of great magic, it can send an opening to the closest dimensional area. But there is bad news. If the portal is used and Alvin is somewhere in Atlar Castle, he will have only a few seconds to pass through the portal or else that dimension will turn to the dimension I just spoke of earlier. And after the portal is used…it disappears forever. So if Alvin is…alive, we will have to release the portal at the exact time he crosses.)

(You are willing to use up your portal in a plan that has a very slim chance of succeeding?) Simon asked.

(He saved my life…it's the least thing I can do.) Sapphire replied back.

Simon smiled at her. (Thanks Sapphire.)

Sapphire smiled back at him.

"Hey Theodore, Brittany I think you'd want to hear this."

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A few minutes later, Simon and Theodore were about to release the box. "This is our only hope" Brittany said quietly.

"Wait Simon, how will Alvin know when we are going to open the portal?" Theodore asked.

"I don't know…. I guess we just have to try by luck. I wish we could give him a signal, but how can we signal him through dimensions" Simon thought. "There's nothing we can do, but hope."

'Alvin…don't give up on us now' Theodore thought.

Everyone crossed their fingers. Suddenly, Simon and Theodore's star necklaces started to shine brightly. Simon and Theodore looked at each other and smiled believing that somewhere, Alvin's was shining too. "NOW!" they all said as Simon and Theodore released the box.

There was a huge blinding light, which made everyone cover their eyes. As soon as the Gathering came out of the woods, they saw Alvin jumping through the portal. The Gathering stared there in shock as Alvin fell on the ground.

"Whoa, rough landing" Alvin said.

Brittany was the first one to break out of the state of shock. "Alvin!" she screamed with joy as she ran up to him and gave him a big hug.

"Now this is what you can call a good greeting. I should get trapped more often," Alvin said with a smile.

"Alvin!" Simon, Theodore and soon after the rest of The Gathering cheered as they went up to greet him.

"I never gave up on you Alvin" Theodore said as he embraced his brother.

"Thanks Theodore, and thank you Simon…but how was I able to cross the portal" Alvin said.

Simon smiled. "You'll have to thank Sapphire. It was her blue box."

Alvin turned to Sapphire who gave him a bright smile. He went down on one knee and gave her a soft hug.

"I know you can't hear me…but thank you" he said.

Simon smiled. "She knows Alvin…she knows."

They all smiled as they looked up in the sky and saw the Destiny Star coming closer and closer to the ground. It was only a matter of time.

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A/N: Well that's it for now. Thank you for the great reviews, I appreciate them a lot.

Till next time.

Atomos Infinity


	10. The Ocean Voyage

_The Ocean Voyage_

"So Brittany, how much did you miss me? Where you crying? I bet you were crying. I see those little tear marks" Alvin started asking her while Brittany was getting annoyed.

"Alvin, if I were you, I would shut up," Brittany growled through her teeth.

"Aww Brittany, are you blushing? I could just picture your reaction. Oh Alvin, please don't go, you are so cool, and strong and good-looking. I could never meet someone as attractive as you," Alvin imitated as he started laughing.

"Alvin Seville! Everything is a joke to you! If you don't shut up, I'll throw you back in that portal!" Brittany shouted.

Eleanor and Jeanette sighed with a slight smile. It seemed like things were getting back to normal. That was a good sign for Brittany.

Simon looked at the odd flute. It was a light blue flute surrounded by gold and purple vines with a light green text on the side. "This is very strange," he said as he touched his hand to his chin.

The Gathering had camped out at the edge of the cliff for the night and were ready to set off. Theodore looked out into ocean and smiled as he saw the shimmering waters. "The ocean is really pretty."

"Maybe so, but how are we going to get across?" Alvin asked.

"What do you mean?" Eleanor asked him.

"Well, our star guides tell us that we have to cross this ocean to get to the Destiny Star."

"Maybe there's a boat around here," Brittany suggested.

"We're on a cliff Brittany," Simon said rolling his eyes.

"It was just a suggestion," Brittany said with an annoyed glare.

"Maybe the trolls knew that we would have to cross the ocean and gave us that flute to…help us cross" Eleanor said.

"There's only one way to find out," Alvin said as he took the flute from Simon and was about to blow it.

"Wait! Are you actually going to put your lips on that! It was given to us by trolls" Brittany stated in disgust.

Simon and Alvin rolled their eyes. "Then what would you suggest?" Alvin asked.

"At least, rinse it off with water" Brittany said.

"Brittany, maybe right. We don't know if the trolls had germs of any kind. It could give you a major sickness," Jeanette said. Brittany smiled and agreed with her sister.

"And it's gross," she added.

"Maybe if we go down, we can rinse it off with the ocean water," Richie said.

"Alright, let's go back to the forest and see if there is a way to get down to ocean level," Theodore said to everyone.

"By the way, what ocean is this anyway?" Jeanette asked Simon as the Gathering headed back to the forest.

Simon took out his book and started reading through the pages. "This ocean is called The Colossus Ocean. There is not a lot of information on it…but it says that ships that have sailed into its fog have never come out. So…we have to stay away from the fog of the ocean. The book says the fog is almost like poison."

"Perfect" Alvin said sarcastically. As the star guide necklaces lead The Gathering through the forest, Simon told Sapphire what was happening.

The Gathering found the ocean within an hour. Alvin then quickly washed the mouthpiece of the flute. "Now is it ready to blow, Brittany?" Alvin asked.

"I still wouldn't wash it with ocean water. I'm glad you're the one blowing it" Brittany said.

Alvin slowly brought the flute to his mouth and blew. An odd sound came out of the flute. It was like some sort of animal call. The Gathering looked around, but nothing happened.

Theodore sighed, "Great, nothing happened."

The same animal call was heard again. Simon turned to Alvin. "There was no point in trying it again, Alvin" he said.

"I…didn't" Alvin replied.

As they all turned towards the ocean, a massive earthquake had started. Then the water from the ocean raged like a tsunami. The Gathering looked closely as something rose from the depths of the ocean. It was some sort of giant sea serpent. Alvin, Simon and Theodore took out their weapons ready to defend their Gathering.

The sea serpent opened its eyes and gave them a warm smile. The chipmunks immediately lowered their weapons. The sea serpent looked at them more closely. "You do not look like trolls…are you half breeds?" the serpent asked.

"Fascinating, a talking sea serpent" Simon said amazed.

"Who are you?" it asked.

"We are not trolls," Alvin said.

"So, you must have stolen the flute!" the serpent said enraged.

"No no! That's not it at all! The trolls gave it to us as a gift." Theodore replied quickly.

The sea serpent calmed down. "Maybe you're right. You seem too nice to be evil. But if the trolls gave the Flute of Atlantis to you, you must have done something really amazing for them…really really amazing because trolls really hate land creatures that   of their species" the sea serpent said.

"We rescued their gold from thieves," Jeanette said.

"I see…. Well, I am here to serve you. What do you ask from me?"

"You're here…to help us?" Brittany asked. The sea serpent nodded.

"If it isn't too much trouble, could you help us cross the Colossus Ocean?" Alvin asked quickly.

"The Colossus Ocean? Well that will be a difficult voyage. Not many land creatures have ever passed the ocean…but since you did help the trolls…I shall assist you" the sea serpent said with a smile.

The Gathering cheered as they began to hop on the sea serpent's back. "But I must tell you, I cannot guarantee your safety. The Colossus Ocean will be very difficult to cross."

"Everything always is" Simon replied.

"But we are here to protect the Gathering, so they will be safe" Theodore said.

"By the way, my name is Atlas."

"I'm Alvin, these are my brothers Simon and Theodore and this is our Gathering" Alvin introduced everyone.

"Get ready for an incredible voyage."

1010101

A woman had left her house in a small village. She looked up at the sky and sighed. Then she turned and saw a man with dark black hair. He wore a brown jacket and blue pants.

"Master Dave, are you alright?" she asked the man. He shook his head.

"My boys are out there in a dangerous world. I just remembered how difficult it was for our Gathering to search for the Destiny Star. How is it fair that we force this upon our children time and time again? And even now…in the new millennium, an era in which the Destiny Star has entered mortal minds… how can we let this happen?" Dave asked as he buried his face into his hands.

"There is nothing we can do, except have faith in our children. Trust is the only thing we can do…all we should do. We need to let them handle themselves. It was how it was meant to be," she said.

"You're right. They are not my little boys anymore. They are the leaders of the Millennium Gathering and I know they can succeed," Dave said confidently.

The woman smiled, patted him on the back and then headed back to her house. Dave looked up at the Destiny Star. It was almost touching the horizon line. "It won't be long now…. Good luck fellas, I trust you…."

1010101

"_The time is near…your end is near. You can never succeed and only death is clear in your miserable future"_

Alvin, Simon and Theodore woke up with a start. Suddenly, the waves started to become rougher and then thunderstorms appeared. The Chipmunks looked at each other and nodded as they took out there weapons.

"Alvin, what's wrong?" Brittany asked as the Gathering started to wake up.

"Something's wrong. Get ready for rough weather," Atlas said.

"Everyone, watch out! Someone's here," Simon said.

"_The time is near…your end is near. You will not succeed…you will fail"_

Simon's eyes widened. "Jeanette, do you hear that?" he asked her. She nodded, they all nodded.

Simon looked at the faces of his brothers and could tell that they had the same fear as he did. "Simon, who is that?" Brittany asked.

"The same person who has been in my nightmares since we started."

Alvin looked at the monstrous image in the sky and saw the bronze suit and piercing red eyes of a mysterious figure. He smiled and pointed to the Gathering.

"Well my little children, it seems I have misjudged you. I wouldn't expect this much determination from little kids," he said as he folded his arms.

"What is that?" Atlas asked.

"He's a true monster," Simon said.

"You were the one who summoned the dragons against us on Dragon Mountain, weren't you!" Brittany stated.

He slowly nodded and then smiled. "I should have known the Gathering could withstand the power of some puny dragons…. My power, on the other hand is invincible!" he roared.

"You will not reach the Destiny Star. We will never let you!" Theodore yelled.

"We shall see when the time comes. In the meantime, this can occupy your time," he said as he closed his eyes.

"Unto me I summon you the mighty beast of the land and sea. Come before me Catoblepas," he chanted as he pointed his finger towards the water. Suddenly lightning bolts from the sky came down and struck the exact point were the enemy pointed.

Alvin, Simon and Theodore knew something bad was going to happen. A dark animal rose from the water. It was a bull-like creature with horns, a long mane, and hard scales. It had a deafening roar and could stand on the water. Its horns were powerful and extremely sharp.

"What is that?" Eleanor asked in fear.

"That's the Catoblepas, the only land monster that has adapted to live in the sea. It can walk on the very water itself. What I don't understand is why is he here?" Atlas asked.

"Well, I don't have to time to watch your demise. I must prepare myself for the Destiny Star, but before I go, I want you to remember what I say. If you even try to get near the Destiny Star, I will not hesitate to kill you. I have been waiting my whole life for this moment, and no Gathering will stop me!" the dark figure yelled as he disappeared.

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"You guys should hold on very tightly. I will try to face the beast of land and sea" Atlas said ready to attack. The Gathering obeyed his orders.

The Catoblepas charged at Atlas. "Hold your breaths!" Atlas said as he dove under the water. The Gathering closed their eyes and held their breaths. Atlas rose up from the water and fired a lethal water blast straight at the Catoblepas but it was unaffected.

"Oh, that's where I've heard the Catoblepas from," Simon said as he took out his book.

"What does it say?" Jeanette asked.

"It's right here, the Catoblepas is a monster that can walk on the land and sea. It is said to have a poisonous breath that it can expel which causes loss of sight, voice and leads to death," Simon read out.

"Whatever you do Atlas, make sure you watch out for his poisonous breath," Brittany said.

"This monster is very fast, I don't know if I can withstand it," Atlas said as he dived under the water again.

"Are you ok?" Theodore looked back at the Gathering, they looked tired and some of them were losing their grip on Atlas. "Atlas, you can't dive under anymore. The others can't hold on."

Suddenly, the Catoblepas turned bright yellow and with great speed rammed into Atlas sending him crashing into the water. Most of the Gathering held on, but some of the younger ones including Sapphire, Brittany and Eleanor couldn't hold on anymore and were sent into the water.

"Oh no!" Jeanette cried out.

Simon grabbed Theodore's hand and dived into the water after them. They started swimming after the others. Theodore knew that they didn't have much time to rescue them.

"Brittany…." Alvin looked on still on Atlas. He wanted to dive in after them, but he knew that he couldn't disobey his father's orders.

Simon and Theodore looked around and saw Sapphire, Eleanor and Brittany drowning. They were unconscious in the sea. Simon and Theodore dove down and held onto them bringing them out of the water and onto Atlas. While this was happening, the Catoblepas was going crazy stomping everywhere.

Theodore raised his hands in the air. Suddenly, a huge gust of wind surrounded them. Simon raised the water in the air surrounding Theodore's gust of wind creating a cyclone. The cyclone headed towards the Catoblepas. The cyclone surrounded it like a tornado. The Gathering watched in silence as the Catoblepas started spinning around. With great speed the cyclone disappeared leaving the monster standing on the water.

Its eyes were enraged and everyone could tell it was furious. Alvin rose to his feet. "Alvin, what are you doing?" Simon asked.

"I have no choice, I have to do this," Alvin said as a huge fire surrounded his body. The Gathering slowly backed away from their guardian in shock. The Catoblepas charged straight towards Atlas, but was suddenly stopped by a wall of fire. Alvin slowly raised his hands in the air and the fire that had surrounded his body began to circle around his hands.

"Flames of Destiny!" Alvin yelled as the fire that circled around his hands was fired into the sky. Then from the sky, huge fire meteors were sent crashing down hitting the Catoblepas. The Catoblepas sunk to the bottom of the sea and then the wave began to calm down, but not before a toxic gas was sent into the air.

The sea was quiet and there were just a few soft sounding waves in the water. Alvin fell back on Atlas. He was really tired and had lost a lot of energy. "Alvin, what did you do?" Brittany asked.

"Goodnight," Alvin mumbled as he went right to sleep. Simon, Theodore and the Gathering looked at Alvin and rolled their eyes.

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I hoped you like the chapter. I'm having a lot of fun with this story, I hope you like it too. That's it for now; please tell me what you think of this chapter.

Till next time

Atomos Infinity


	11. Lost in a Dimension

_Lost in a Dimension_

Alvin woke up staring into the eyes of an angry Brittany. "Alvin!" she yelled causing Alvin to jump up, lose his balance and fall off Atlas into the Colossus Ocean.

Alvin rose up from the water very annoyed, "What do you want!" he yelled back.

"An explanation," Simon said calmly.

"For what?"

"For the magic that you summoned to defeat one of the ocean's deadliest creatures," Atlas said.

"Oh yeah…um…I can't tell you," Alvin said looking towards the sky.

"Why not?" Eleanor asked.

"The person I learned it from told me not to reveal him to the Gathering," Alvin said.

"What do you mean? When did you learn that move? Was it when you were stuck in that time portal?" Jeanette asked.

"Come to think of it, you never really told us what happened to you when you were trapped in that dimension," Simon thought as he started stroking his chin.

"I didn't think it was…important?" Alvin replied sheepishly. It was more like a question rather than a reply.

"Tell us now, Alvin" Brittany demanded.

"Or else what?" Alvin argued back.

"Tell us or I will tell everyone about your…deepest secrets," Simon said with a little smirk.

Alvin growled, "You wouldn't…."

"Listen up everyone, one night I went outside, when imagine my surprise…."

"Ok! Ok! I'll tell you!" Alvin shouted.

Atlas smiled at the children as he continued to swim. They were amazing. Not only were they incredibly powerful, but also they were still kids. Playful, simple, and innocent spirits.

"Who cares about the dimension, what did you see Simon?" Brittany asked obviously interested in Alvin's secret.

"If you say one word Simon, I will personally drown you in the ocean," Alvin growled.

"Then you better tell us what happened?"

"…Fine. It started like this…."

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Everyone was passing through the portal. Sapphire just crossed. Simon and Alvin were the only ones left. Simon was just at the portal, but he turned back to see Alvin.

"Go Simon, I'll catch up" Alvin said.

Simon nodded and passed through the portal. The castle was just about destroyed. Alvin turned around to face the monsters. "If you want to get through this portal, you'll have to go through me."

The portal had closed and the dimension was crashing down. Alvin put his fingers in a triangle formation sending a fire blast at the enemies, but it would be pointless when the dimension was being destroyed. Suddenly a cloaked figure appeared from another portal and pulled Alvin in. The demon roared as their dimension shattered along with them.

When Alvin opened his eyes, he saw the cloaked figure from before that taught him the power of fire, but…what was he doing here…and how did he get here.

The cloaked figure turned to Alvin and then took off his hood. The older chipmunk smiled at Alvin. "Your journey is not over just yet," he said.

Alvin got up and brushed some dust away from his clothes, "Uhh…thanks for saving me."

"You do not have to thank me. I was just playing my role in the quest to the Destiny Star," he said.

"...okaaaay, whatever. Just tell me how you know about the Destiny Star," Alvin said.

"I can't tell you right now," he said.

"Why can't you? I can't return back to my world anyway," Alvin said in regret as he sat on the ground.

"…I must leave you right now," he said.

"Why? What am I suppose to do?" Alvin asked.

The older chipmunk put his hand to Alvin's chest and then a bright light appeared. Suddenly small stars started circling around Alvin's body. Then there was another bright flash and when Alvin opened his eyes, the older chipmunk was gone.

Alvin sighed, "I guess all I can do right now is walk."

Alvin started walking not knowing where he was going. He found himself surrounded in a desert. Although there was no sun in the sky, he felt very hot, lost and tired. A few minutes later, he reached an area surrounded by hot lava and fire. The temperature was extremely hot and the air was very dense.

"I better get out of this place. It's too hot," Alvin said to himself. He was about to walk away, but a barrier blocked his way. There was an invisible wall stopping him from leaving.

"What kind of sick game is this?" Alvin said. Suddenly, the barrier pushed him closer to the lava. Alvin struggled to get away, but all the sides were blocked by barriers.

The only opening was the lava, which started to get fiercer. Alvin couldn't resist the pressure anymore. He was too tired to resist and the heat was too much to bear. 'I'm sorry Dave…I let you down. I let the Gathering down' Alvin's last thought as he was sent into the lava.

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"Oh my Alvin! How did you escape?" Theodore asked with great interest and great fear.

"Alvin, don't you think you are a bit over doing it?" Simon asked with an annoyed look.

"What do you mean?"

"Well it's one thing to tell us you fell into lava, but did you have to tell us what you were thinking; that you thought you let us all down and that you were so noble. I bet you were just thinking of saving yourself," Brittany said with a glare.

"It doesn't matter what I was thinking. The point was that I was about to die in lava. Now can I get on with my story?" Alvin asked proving everyone's point. The Gathering nodded.

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Alvin sunk into the lava. He knew he was going to die, but something strange happen. When he felt the lava…it felt like water. It was like he was swimming in water. He wasn't hurt; the lava didn't hurt at all. It wasn't even hot. He started to swim up and when he rose from the lava, he looked up and saw the older chipmunk from before holding out his hand for Alvin.

Alvin cautiously grabbed it and allowed him to be pulled out of the lava. When Alvin looked back at the burning fire area, he found that it didn't feel as hot as before. It looked the same, but it felt…cooler.

"What happened?" Alvin asked.

"You have allowed the power of fire to fully enter your body. You have learned to tolerate its power. Now I am ready to show you, the most powerful fire technique," he said.

"Powerful technique?" Alvin asked. The older chipmunk nodded and then raised his hands in the air as a huge fire surrounded his body. Then fire that had surrounded his body began to circle around his hands.

"Flames of Destiny!" he yelled as the fire that circled around his hands was fired into the sky. Then from the sky, huge fire meteors were sent crashing down to the ground. Each of these meteors created massive explosions, which left Alvin in complete shock.

The older chipmunk turned to Alvin. Are you ready to learn what you were destined to learn?" he asked. Alvin slowly nodded but was speechless.

Alvin and the other mysterious chipmunk walked into an open area. "This may take some time to perfect and it will drain a lot of energy from you, so you must only use it in moments of great importance," he said.

Alvin nodded, "So what do I do?"

"Like before, I want you to focus your energy into a small fireball," he said.

Alvin did this easily creating a small fireball over his hands. "Now, I want you to close your eyes and remember how it was like to enter the lava. How your body felt when it entered the lava pit," he said.

Alvin closed his eyes and remembered how it felt. How it was like swimming in the lava, and how he felt no pain. Suddenly, a fire had surrounded his body.

"Now raise your hands in the air and try focusing your memory into that small fireball you created before," he commanded.

Alvin followed sending the mighty power into his hands. "Now, fire it at the sky!"

Alvin directed his fire towards the sky, but suddenly, the fire energy disappeared and Alvin was sent back hitting the ground hard.

The old chipmunk smiled, "You still have a lot to work on, but now you know how the technique is done."

Alvin was so tired. All his energy was gone so the mysterious chipmunk decided to let him rest.

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"So that's how it's done?" Eleanor asked.

"Yes, that's how it is done," Alvin replied proudly.

"Focus your energy, huh. Maybe…there is a way for me and Theodore to learn it too," Simon said.

"Are you going to let me finish my story?" Alvin asked.

"You just love attention, don't you Alvin?" Brittany said.

"You were the one who wanted to know what happened to me in that dimension," Alvin argued.

"All I wanted to know is how you used the Flames of Destiny. I don't really care what happened to you," Brittany said as she turned away.

"Well tough luck cause you're going to here it anyway. Now, where was I?" Alvin started.

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Alvin slowly opened his eyes and saw the mysterious chipmunk near a portal. "What happened?" Alvin asked.

"You had lost a lot of energy, but it seems it has returned. I would have liked you to try the move again, but it seems that you are needed elsewhere," he said.

"What do you mean?" Alvin asked.

"You are needed in the journey to the Destiny Star," he said.

"I can't go back. The dimension was destroyed," Alvin said.

"You shouldn't underestimate the determination of your Gathering. The question is; when the time comes, will you be ready to cross?" the chipmunk said.

"What are you talking about? There is no way I can get back. I might as well stay here for my whole life."

"In order to cross to a dimension, both portals must be open. If somehow, your Gathering can open a portal, you can get through. But you will need some signal to show you are ready to cross."

"But what should I do?" Alvin asked.

"You will find out in time. But for now, is there anything else you need to know?" he asked.

"What's your name?" Alvin asked.

"My name is not important?" he said.

"Come on. After all you have done, you have to tell me your name," Alvin said.

"My name…is Malix Tidalar" he said.

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"MALIX TIDALAR! Are you serious?" Simon cried out. Everyone looked at Alvin in silence.

"What's the big deal?" Alvin asked.

"Alvin, didn't you know that Malix Tidalar was Simon's hero. That Simon had been very sad when everyone thought he was dead and he has been praying everyday that he was still alive," Jeanette said.

"Why would he not want to reveal himself to us...to me," Simon spoke quietly to himself.

"Oh…I guess I didn't know. Oh well" Alvin said sheepishly.

"How can one person be so dense?" Brittany said.

"Listen Brittany…" Alvin was about to argue back when Atlas interrupted him.

"Uh oh, we have trouble?" he said.

"What is it, Atlas?" Eleanor asked.

"It seems that the poisonous gas that the Catoblepas released when it was destroyed has fused with the deadly fog of the ocean. It will be impossible to get across," Atlas said.

"We have to. We have to get to the Destiny Star," Jeanette said. The Gathering sighed. They had reached another obstacle.

The poisonous fog started to spread throughout the water very quickly. "Everyone! Cover your nose," Alvin said.

"…maybe…if the right pressure was exerted on the water and the right force of wind was present…maybe we could split the….Theodore send your wind power towards the gas!" Simon said.

Theodore looked at Simon with confusion...and then he nodded. He closed his eyes and remembered what Alvin had said to release his powers. Focus your energy. He felt the wind surrounding him and he opened his eyes and looked at the Destiny Star. He now knew how the Destiny Star could help him. It gave him strength, it gave all of them strength, because their strength lied in their determination, their destiny. Theodore raised his hand in the air. "Spirits of the Wind come forth!" Theodore said as bright lights fired towards the sky.

Suddenly, light changed into spirits, which moved like the wind splitting through the poisonous gas. Theodore turned to Simon and nodded. Simon put his hands under the water and then the water started to ripple. It started small but then continued to grow.

The water grew and grew until there was a huge whirlpool. "Now Theodore, use your wind spirits to lift up Atlas," Simon told him.

"Wait a minute…."

Theodore nodded and with a wave of his hands, the wind spirits lifted Atlas into the sky. As this happened, the whirlpool sucked in all the poisonous gas into it's vortex.

Atlas watched in amazement as he flew through the sky with the support of the wind spirits. "Wow, this is so amazing," Eleanor cheered.

Atlas stared truly amazed. Alvin grumbled as he glared at his brothers. "How is it that it had to take me over many days to learn my power and you guys learn it in less than 30 minutes!"

"Let's face it, Alvin. You are a very slow learner. If you tried to understand these concepts in depth, you would have learned it faster," Simon said with a smug look. He turned to Theodore and smiled. Theodore smiled back as Alvin started growling.

The creatures of the ocean stared up wide-eyed as they saw one of their own flying over the ocean like a bird. An hour later, Atlas landed on the ground on the other side of the ocean.

"Finally land!" Brittany said as she got off Atlas. The Gathering slowly got off after her. Alvin, Simon and Theodore turned to Atlas. "We can't thank you enough…for all you've done," Theodore said.

"Now I know you guys aren't just regular travellers. I mean look what you can do. You can command the elements, can defeat giant monsters, and even defy gravity."

"It's complicated, but we don't want you to be troubled by our problems. Oh…we should give you back this flute," Simon said.

Atlas shook his head, "The trolls entrusted you with that flute for a reason. They must have great faith in you. You may keep it. This flute is magical, where ever there is water call upon me and I will be there."

"Really? Like magic?" Jeanette asked.

Atlas nodded, "Call upon me when you are in danger and I will use my strength to assist you in anyway. I hope you find what you are searching for. Until that time, farewell my friends."

The Gathering waved as their new friend dove into the depths of the ocean disappearing from their sight.

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A/N: I hoped you like this chapter; please read + review if you can.

Till next time

Atomos Infinity


	12. Land of the Giants

_Land of the Giants_

"I can't believe it. Malix Tidalar is alive and he is safe. I know now that everything will be alright. I'm totally confident," Simon said with a smile as he and the Gathering walked down on a sunny brick road.

Brittany sighed, "I'm just glad we're out of that yucky water" she said.

"We should be coming to a village soon, right Simon?" Theodore asked.

"Yeah, we should."

"Good, maybe I could get a good bath now" Brittany said.

"I thought you said that you were glad to be out of water…now you want to go back in?" Jeanette asked. Brittany was about to reply, but Simon interrupted her.

"It should take about three days to get to Lyra's Point," Simon said to himself quietly as he stared at his star necklace.

"Why do we need to go to Lyra's Point?" Eleanor asked behind him.

"Well…two years ago I began to estimate the approximate landing of the Destiny Star. I studied with books of star motion and formations and I found out that it was landing exactly on Lyra's Point. It is a rock formation in the shape of a harp and my hypothesis states that it will land on the exact tip of the harp."

Alvin rolled his eyes as Simon explained the tests and procedures he experimented according to his hypothesis.

A few minutes later, The Gathering entered a clearing. The air was cleaner than anything they had ever felt. "There's something strange about this place, let me read into it before we enter," Simon said as he opened his book.

"You gotta be kidding me, Simon. We don't need to check up every single time we move," Alvin said as he began to walk into the clearing. Suddenly, a huge alarm had sounded.

"TRESPASSERS! TRESPASSERS!" the alarm said.

"Uh oh" Alvin said sheepishly.

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"Well, thanks again Alvin. You know, this is just like you. You are always so stupid and It's gonna get you killed!" Simon yelled.

"Well if you had looked up your information faster, I wouldn't have had to walk here," Alvin said as he folded his arms.

"If you mean my speed of looking up information doesn't measure up to your stupidity, than you're right."

"Here they go again," Jeanette said with a sigh as the brothers argued.

Suddenly, the ground shook ferociously and a loud booming sound could be heard a fair distance away. "What's that sound?" Theodore asked.

"Whatever it is, it's coming closer and it's big," Eleanor stated.

Alvin, Simon, and Theodore took out their weapons as an enormous human-like figure with powerful hands, a huge chest and a gigantic club in one hand stared at them. Fifty Simons piled on top of each other was around the giant's height.

"Who dares enter the Land of the Giants!" the huge man roared.

"The Land of the Giants? Of course, this place is called Goliath," Simon said as he quickly scanned through his book. "This place is the cause for the unbalanced axis in which the world spins, because of the incredible mass in this area, the ground is shifted," he explained to his Gathering.

"Ohhh," they replied.

"How dare you ignore me! Feel the wrath of my club!" it roared.

"Everyone, get out of the way!" Theodore told the Gathering as they tried the best they could to dodge the mighty club. They all just barely dodged the club, but when the club hit the ground, it created a huge shockwave.

This caught the Gathering off guard sending them falling backwards and hitting the ground hard. Some of the younger kids in the group were really hurt.

Simon looked to see if Sapphire was fine. She nodded and tried to completely ignore the pain that she felt in her left arm.

"Alright, that does it. I'm getting sick and tired of this guy already. Theodore, check if the younger kids in the Gathering are ok. Me and Alvin will try to fight this monster," Simon said.

"Monster? Monster! You enter my village and you dare to call me a monster!" the giant roared.

"Aww…does that tick you off, Monster? Are you really mad now, Monster?" Alvin joked.

The giant growled; he was getting more and more annoyed with these intruders. He lifted his club in the air with two hands. Alvin and Simon placed their hands in a triangle formation and then used their ability to send a blaze of fire and water hitting the giant in the stomach. This sent him down on one knee.

"You're power is strong, but mine is greater!" he said as he slammed the ground hard causing the entire Gathering to lose their balance and fall backwards again. Now there were a lot more people injured including Brittany, Jeanette, Alvin and Simon.

Alvin got up slowly, "How can we beat that thing?"

"I was going to tell everyone to run, but now everyone is injured, it will be impossible," Simon said.

"Now, to eliminate the intruders," the giant said as he raised his club in the air with two hands and was about to send it smashing to the ground. Alvin awaited for impact, but suddenly, the giant stopped.

He then stared at Sapphire, "You…look familiar?"

The Gathering turned to Sapphire. (Do you know him?) Simon asked.

(No, I've never seen him before in my life. Why, what did he say?) Sapphire asked.

The giant put his huge hand into his even bigger pocket like he was searching for something. Then he brought out a paper and stared at it. Then he looked back at Sapphire.

"Oh, so you are that girl. It's about time you showed up," he said with a smile.

Simon turned to Sapphire, (Are you sure you don't know him?)

Sapphire nodded, (You should know that there is no way I could have been here. To do that, I'd have to cross the Colossus Ocean.)

"You must be mistaken, she has never been here," Simon said.

"She might have never been here, but someone who belongs to her has," the giant said.

Sapphire asked Simon what he was saying. (The giant just said someone who belongs to you is here in their land.)

Sapphire's eyes widened when she heard that. The giant moved out of the way and then suddenly, Sapphire's heart was filled with joy when she saw the figure standing behind him.

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An elderly woman smiled at her softly. She held out her arms. "My child at last you have come back to me," she said in her soft elderly voice.

Her blue eyes shimmered in the shining sun. Sapphire was overcome with so much joy. She started to walk slowly towards her.

Something's not right Alvin thought.

"Come here my child," the old woman said. Suddenly, Sapphire stopped in her tracks. She started backing up slowly.

"Sapphire, what's wrong?" Brittany asked forgetting that she couldn't hear her.

In tears she turned to Simon. (She's not my grandmother, Simon.)

(What do you mean?) Simon asked.

(I watched my grandmother die with my own eyes. I will never forget my last image of my grandmother dying. She is either a ghost or a monster in disguise. Please Simon don't let it get me.)

Simon nodded and then turned to the woman. "Alright impostor, your little trick has gone on long enough. Reveal yourself," Simon said pointing his axe at her.

"What are you doing, Simon!" Theodore yelled.

"I knew this wasn't right. Listen whoever you are. The charade is over," Alvin said taking out his sword.

"Very well, I guess the little brat could see through my disguise," the old woman said with a different voice. She transformed into the evil gargoyle that had chased Sapphire in the woods. {Chapter 6}

Sapphire's eyes were filled with fear. The evil gargoyle started to walk closer to the Gathering. Now give me the blue box!" he demanded.

Sapphire tugged on Simon's shoulder. (Simon be careful. His screaming will destroy your hearing.)

(Here, give me the box, and no matter what, stay away from the gargoyle) Simon said to her taking the box.

"Last chance," it said. Alvin smiled as he took the blue box from Simon.

"Here, take it," he said as he threw the box to the gargoyle.

The gargoyle quickly grabbed it as everyone stayed quiet. The gargoyle opened the box. His eyes widened when he saw that there was nothing there. "No! No! This can't be…I am doomed to suffer in this dimension for the rest of my life. NO!"

The Gathering began to back up. It was very obvious to see that the gargoyle was out of his mind. His eyes were pure red and his body was surrounded by fire. "You will all suffer. I will kill you all. If only I received the vortex sooner, I would have had time to leave this dimension before it would consume me. But now, I will die here, and it is all your fault!" it said as it was about to attack.

"Everyone, cover your ears! Now!" Theodore yelled as everyone covered their ears. Alvin, Simon and Theodore were prepared to strike.

"Get ready, because not even you will withstand my power," it said. Alvin looked at something behind the gargoyle. Then he smiled and lowered his sword. Simon and Theodore did the same thing.

"Why are you lowering your weapons!" the gargoyle asked as he was ready for battle.

"We won't have to fight you," Simon said simply with a smirk.

"It seems like someone else is willing to do that for us," Theodore said with a bright smile pointing behind the gargoyle.

The gargoyle turned around and stared into the eyes of a very mad giant.

"Uh oh."

"So! You were just tricking us? Were you trying to make a fool out of me in my own land!" the giant yelled as he grabbed the gargoyle with his giant hand and with a mighty wind-up, threw him off into the distance.

The Gathering waved as the evil gargoyle was thrown to the other side of the world never to be seen again.

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"I must apologize for my actions. I have been played for a fool by that…demon. As amends for my behaviour, I ask that you stay in the Land of the Giants until you are ready to leave," the giant said.

"Theodore, are you sure it is safe to stay here. After all, these are giants," Brittany whispered to him.

"Brittany's right Simon. What if the other giants get mad or have really bad tempers?" Theodore whispered to Simon.

"Excuse me Sir, how far is this area from Lyra's Point?" Simon asked adjusting his glasses.

"Is that where you are going? Then you should stay here. If you stay the night then you will be able to reach Lyra's point by tomorrow night," the giant said.

"Fine, we'll stay here tonight. But, you better not try to kill us in our sleep or something," Alvin said.

"I'm warning you children now. If you make any threats to me in my land, you will not last long," he said as he towered over them showing his size compared to them.

Alvin swallowed a lump in his throat and then put his hands in front of him. "When you put it that way…how can we say, no?" he replied with a nervous laugh.

"You will call me Demoritus, and I will be your guide," the giant signalled the Gathering to follow him. Simon glared at Alvin.

"What?" Alvin asked as Simon stomped right by him growling and muttering something quietly.

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There was a very long argument with Demoritus and the other giants of the land on whether they should let the Gathering stay over night, but because Demoritus was one of the leaders in the land, the giants had to obey him.

"So we agree. They will stay for the night," he said to the other giants. They nodded their heads slowly. Demoritus turned to the Gathering and he saw that a lot of the young children were hurt and injured.

"…you should try our hot springs. Our waters have the incredible power to relax the muscles of the body and soothe them. It is a magnificent healer of any injury," he said. Brittany's eyes sparkled as she imagined herself relaxing in the nice warm waters.

"Hot springs!"

"Knowing these giants, it's probably a swamp" Alvin whispered to Theodore.

"Thank you for…everything," Eleanor said graciously. Demoritus nodded his head and then left.

Alvin, Simon, Theodore, Brittany, Jeanette, Eleanor and Sapphire stared at the glowing star in the sky. It was getting really close. They felt that if they could just jump, they could touch it. The bright star illuminated the night sky with an eerie but fascinating glow.

Alvin, Simon and Theodore's star guides were shining more than ever. "This is it. I can't believe that we're almost there. After all we've been through, we are almost at the Destiny Star," Theodore said.

"I can't believe how far we've gone. We're almost there," Jeanette said. Simon looked at his star necklace.

"It's an amazing feeling. By tomorrow, we will be immortal," Alvin said.

"I don't know Alvin, the star guides seem to show trouble in the future. Whatever happens, I know it won't be easy."

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A/N: Sorry for the late update, I hope you like this chapter.

Atomos Infinity


	13. The Music Box

In this chapter the song of the Music Box will be "Fairytale" by Enya. I do not own this song, but I hope you like it.

_The Music Box_

Brittany sighed in relaxation as she laid back in the warm hot springs. She looked up at the sky and smiled.

"This is the life, right Eleanor?"

Eleanor rested her head along the border of the hot springs. She was very nervous, and Jeanette could tell. "Are you alright?" she asked her.

Eleanor tried to smile back, but her nervousness got the better of her. She sighed, "How can we be so calm now? At anytime, that guy who attacked us in the ocean could strike."

"You shouldn't worry. Our guardians will never let anything happen to us," Jeanette said as she fixed Sapphire's messy hair.

"But now someone knows about the Destiny Star. Our ancestors always went off on their journeys in secret. Now, we will have to fight for the Destiny Star and I'm sure that has the boys worried…I know it does," Eleanor replied as she stared at the Destiny Star.

It was hard for her to believe that one star could cause so much trouble. But she was happy, because on this adventure, she and Theodore became a lot closer and he has also become more confident in himself. She showed a bright smile on her face, which let Jeanette know she was alright.

Brittany rose up from the hot springs. "I can't relax with you here. You all are always talking about that star. I'm going to take a walk."

"Where are you going Brittany?" Jeanette asked.

"I'm just looking around. Don't worry; I can take care of myself."

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Brittany had been walking for quite a while in a deep dark forest. She tried to go back the way she came, but she was lost. "This isn't good. Now everyone will be looking for me. I've gotta find my way back."

She started searching for any path that she could follow that could lead her back to the Gathering. Suddenly, she heard a faint noise in the distance. She started walking cautiously towards the sound. {It sounds…like…a song?} she thought to herself.

As she headed towards the song, she realized that she had heard the song before. It was very familiar but she couldn't tell where she heard the song. As she was getting closer, light was gradually turning into dark and there was a cold chill in the night. Brittany shivered and then stopped moving.

"Forget it. Clearly this isn't the place I should be going into. I better get out of here," Brittany said to herself as common sense got the better of her.

As Brittany was about to leave the area, the familiar song she heard was getting louder and louder. Brittany now recognized the song. "Mother!"

She started running as fast as she could to the song. She ignored the feeling of falling into darkness and she just kept running. The sound was getting louder and louder and then it stopped.

Right when Brittany entered the dark room, the song stopped. Then Brittany saw where the music was coming from. A music box laid on the floor in front of her. It was a beautiful, light blue music box that had stunning images of diamonds and rubies. Brittany stared at the box with amazement. Her eyes, lost in a sea of shimmering colours.

She carefully opened the music box to once again hear the tune that danced in her memories. Soon, there was a bright flash and everything turned pure white. Then, she could hear voices all around her.

_This is your fault…_

_This is your fault…_

FAIRYTALE – By Enya

The music box was heard again, except this time, it was an actual melody. A mother was singing the tune to her three children. There was a calm smile on their faces as they relaxed in peace. The moonlight was shining through the windowsill creating a calm and relaxed feeling. She rocked them to sleep, and then she kissed them each on the forehead as the three young girls went to sleep. She smiled. "Goodnight, my dears."

Brittany smiled as her eyes filled with tears. She remembered feeling the kiss of her mother to her forehead. "Goodnight Miss Miller," she said as the music from the music box stopped.

_This is your fault…_

_This is your fault…_

She looked around her as everything became dark and then there was another flash and the music once again started. Brittany saw an image of Miss Miller and herself with her sisters a bit older than the time before. It seemed that she was really upset about something.

Miss Miller seemed really hurt and her sisters seemed really nervous about something. "You never understand how I feel!" the young Brittany yelled at her mother.

"Brittany, I do understand how you feel, but you cannot go off breaking a promise as if it was nothing. A promise is really important."

"I know what a promise is! But, I make one mistake and you see it as if it was the end of the world. Who cares about one little broken promise!" young Brittany yelled.

"I'm sorry if my punishment is harsh, but I must stick by it. You really worried me today," Miss Miller said.

"I can't believe you. I can't believe you would do this to your own daughter!"

"Brittany…maybe you should calm down…" Eleanor said softly.

"Quiet Eleanor, I'm not talking to you. I'm talking to my thoughtless mother, who doesn't care about me!"

"Brittany, I love you. How could you say that?" Miss Miller said obviously hurt.

"It's the truth, isn't?"

"Brittany…I promise that I will love you forever."

"Forget it. You know what? You don't deserve to be my mother! You don't deserve to be anyone's mother, you don't care!" Brittany yelled as she stormed out of the room leaving her mother in tears. As the image faded away, the music from the music box stopped once again.

Brittany had tears in her eyes; she couldn't believe that she could ever get that mad at her mother, but she knew she had. She remembered the sadness in her mother's eyes. She could remember that fight as if it had happened yesterday. "I'm sorry Miss Miller. I..I didn't mean it. I..I…"

She felt very weak and wanted to die right then and there. "It wasn't that she didn't deserve me…I didn't deserve her…. Maybe that was why she was taken from…me…" Brittany cried as the music box started once more with a bright flash.

_This is your fault…_

_This is your fault…_

"Brittany, why are you crying?" a mother asked her child. This Brittany was older than the one before. The young girl opened her eyes as the mother dried off her tears.

"Miss Miller, do you believe in dreams?" she asked. Miss Miller smiled and stroked Brittany's hair softly.

"Yes, I do."

"Well, my dream is to have the most beautiful flower in the world. Jeanette told me that flowers can draw out a young girl's beauty. She showed me pictures of the Starlight Flower. A flower created by the light of a bright star. It is said to be the most beautiful flower in the world. If my dream is to have that flower, do you think that it could come true?" she asked.

"Brittany, I believe that if you follow your dreams, anything can happen. Remember that sweetie. Anything can happen if you believe."

Brittany had a bright smile on her face as she raced up to her mother and embraced her, "Thank you for believing in me. I love you…mother," Brittany whispered to her.

"I love you too dear," she replied as everything turned dark and another image was shown. It was a picture of her mother talking to Dave.

"Hi David."

"Greetings Miss Miller, it looks like your packing for a trip. Where are you going?" he asked.

"Don't tell anyone, but I'm going to find the Starlight Flower for my daughter. I don't want Brittany to give up on her dreams, so that's why I'm heading off. I want you to look after my daughters for me. And tell them that I love them," she said.

"Are you sure that you want to go? The outside world is very dangerous," Dave said a bit worried.

"Don't worry, I'm immortal remember? Besides, there is nothing I won't do for my family. Goodbye David," she waved as she left the village. Dave waved back to her as the image faded away and everything went dark.

Brittany couldn't believe it. She had not known that it was because of her that Miss Miller died. Because she wanted that flower, her eyes were in tears. It was her fault Miss Miller is gone. It was her fault. She couldn't live with herself. She wanted to die right then and there. She couldn't live with the guilt.

_This is your fault…_

_This is your fault…_

Brittany was begging to die, but another image appeared. It was of her and her sisters, but they were a bit older than before. And once again, the music box played.

Brittany, Jeanette and Eleanor stayed out in the rain staring off into the distance, waiting if their mother would return, but there was no sign. They continued waiting everyday just hoping for a glimpse of their mother, but there wasn't anything.

Dave had gone off with a group of people from the village, to search for her. The girls waited, but after a few days, Dave came back to the village with bad news. He went up to the three sisters from behind. "I'm sorry girls, Miss Miller is dead," he said as he handed them a shattered crystal with the music box beside it. The girls fell to their knees and started to cry. The image then faded and Brittany was left in tears. She tried to reach out, but the image was gone. The music box played once again.

_This is your fault…_

"I'm sorry mother!" she screamed.

_This is your fault…_

"I'm sorry mother!" she screamed knowing that it could not bring Miss Miller back. The song was a remembrance of all the good times she had with her mother, but they were now all memories. Because of her, Miss Miller would never come back.

"Please, stop!" she cried.

_This is your fault…_

"Please, stop!" she cried again.

_This is your fault…_

"I'm sorry!"

_This is your fault…_

"Brittany!" a voice was heard, a familiar voice.

_This is your fault…_

"Brittany!" it repeated.

_This is your fault…_

"I'm sorry!"

_This is your fault…_

"Brittany!"

Suddenly, Alvin broke through the darkness. "Brittany, are you in here!"

Brittany suddenly was brought out of the shock. When she looked around, she had noticed that she was carrying the music box and that she was in a dark cave.

Alvin entered and Brittany quickly gave him a strong embrace after she dropped the music box. "Alvin! It was all my fault! Everything was my fault!"

"It's okay, Brittany... Everything will be okay," he said as he returned her hug. "Let's get you outta here."

Brittany didn't reply, she just let herself be carried on Alvin's back as they headed out of the cave. Before they left, Brittany took one last look behind her at the cave and there she saw it. The music box was playing the familiar song for the last time.

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After awhile, Brittany wanted to walk on her own, so Alvin let her off his back. They were walking back to the Gathering in silence. Alvin didn't want to say anything, because he could tell that Brittany wasn't in the mood for talking. He could tell she was very upset and he didn't want to say anything stupid.

They continued walking until Alvin stopped. "Oh, I almost forgot. Here, it's for you," Alvin said handing her a flower. Brittany's eyes widened when she saw what flower it was.

"I found it when I was exploring the Land of the Giants. I forget what Jeanette called it though. Anyway, I know that you're feeling down so, I got it for you. For like…you know…whatever" he said as he shrugged his shoulders. Brittany let out a few tears as she gave him a big smile.

"The…Starlight Flower. You…got it for me…" she said.

"Well…I can't have any sad people in my Gathering. What kind of leader would I be?" he said as he turned the other way blushing.

"Thanks Alvin," she said softly as she kissed him on the cheek. Alvin smiled.

"We better get back to the others," he said extending his hand out to her.

"Ok," she said as she accepted it and they walked hand in hand in the night.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah"

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A/N: Well, there's your Alvin and Brittany romance. I hope you liked this chapter. Please tell me what ya think.

Till next time

Atomos Infinity


	14. Memories: The Calm Before the Storm

_Memories: The Calm Before the Storm_

After leaving the Land of the Giants, the Gathering walked towards Lyra's Point in silence. They headed on a rocky path through the forest. Theodore was carrying one of the girl's in the Gathering who became very tired from walking.

There was a certain feeling in the air. The feeling that told the Gathering that something was going to happen. For this reason, they stayed silent. Alvin looked back at Brittany and could tell that she was hurting. She kept staring at the Starlight Flower that Alvin had given her with a depressed look on her face.

(Simon, why is Brittany so sad?) Sapphire asked.

(Well Sapphire, her mother…Miss Miller had died only a few years ago. She still gets depressed sometimes. So do Jeanette and Eleanor) Simon told her.

(I thought Brittany's mother was immortal. How could she die?) Sapphire asked in confusion.

(There are ways to kill immortals. It just depends on how you do it. That's why our ancient ancestors of our village aren't alive today. Although they are immortal, they continue to grow old. They are just incapable of dying by direct force. But we must allow the life cycle to continue and therefore, when the elders get past their life expectancy, we take them to the shrine and allow their souls to be taken from their bodies and escape into the air) Simon explained.

(Is that what happened to Miss Miller?) Sapphire asked.

(Not exactly. You see, Dave…my father told us that Miss Miller had set off for an important mission. He didn't tell us why, but he said she would return in a couple of days. I remember Jeanette and her sisters waited everyday for Miss Miller, but she never came. Dave went out to search for her, but came back with a shattered jewel and a music box. Dave secretly told me that when he found the jewel and the music box, he found Miss Miller's empty body right beside them. He decided not to take the body because he knew it would be too painful for the girls to see. So he buried it. I believe that someone trapped her soul inside the jewel and shattered it. Her soul was then lost through all eternity, which is probably a fate worst then death) Simon said with a sigh as Alvin took the tired girl from Theodore and was now carrying her on his back.

Sapphire had know idea how much pain Brittany had to endure, she remembered her Grandmother and how much pain she felt when she had died. But she at least knew her soul was free. But to have her soul lost for all eternity, would be too much for her to bear. Sapphire went up to Brittany and gave her a comforting hug. Brittany was surprised at first, but then returned the hug and soon Jeanette, Eleanor and some of the girls in the Gathering joined in.

After the touching moment, Eleanor walked up to Theodore. She held his hand and smiled at him. "Are you alright?" she asked.

Theodore blushed a little, "I'm a little worried and a bit scared of what will happen when we reach the Destiny Star…but I'm feeling better because I know I have everyone with me."

The Destiny Star was drawing nearer and every second was very agitating. The group walked in silence thinking about the past.

"I…remember one thing," Alvin started hoping to break the tension. "Malix Tidalar told me at the beginning. He said that whoever was after us would try to take our Star guides because they were the only key to finding where the Destiny Star will land," Alvin said.

"Simon, didn't you say that your study showed that the Destiny Star would land on Lyra's Point. If the Star guides are the only things that could lead us to the Destiny Star, then how could you find out where it would land?" Jeanette asked.

"…I used Malix Tidalar's book to find the Destiny Star...but it is strange that the result could be so accurate. I don't remember much about the calculating, it seemed like the answer just came to me one night" Simon thought.

"Come to think of it, Malix also said that there are forces stronger than the Destiny Star we will be facing," Alvin explained folding his arms.

"Stronger than the Destiny Star…what could be stronger?" Jeanette asked.

"We can't worry about that now. The Destiny Star is the only thing we should be focusing on," Theodore said.

They continued walking in silence. This silence was terrible. The slightest sound in the forest could be heard and Alvin was expecting a surprise attack at any moment. He had to say something…anything.

"Umm…Simon?" he started. Simon looked back at him with a sigh.

"What is it now, Alvin?" he asked in annoyance.

"What do you mean 'what is it now' no one has said anything for about an hour?" Alvin replied.

"I don't want to fight with you Alvin. Not now, not when the Destiny Star is so close," Simon said. Saying this made everyone so nervous.

"I just…before we reach the…you know…I just wanted to tell you why I was so angry at the beginning of the journey," Alvin said as he put his hands in his pockets.

"Really?" Simon said sarcastically.

"I'm serious. It's just that…I didn't really care about this journey. I was always expected to 'do this' and 'be that'. That wasn't…this isn't me. I'm not a hero…I never wanted to be...and I know neither did you. But when I saw you and Theodore…you guys just…did what you were expected to do. Theodore being afraid and yet, he was able to stay strong and brave. You, being able to use your abilities to guide us through the danger. I didn't know what to do, I didn't know who to be. But now I know who to be. I need to be someone who's there. There for Brittany and for everyone in the Gathering," Alvin said.

"Alvin…umm…I don't know what to say."

"Alvin…" Theodore smiled.

"Besides, a leader has to be totally honest,"

"Um…Alvin technically you're not the leader," Simon said.

"Uh…technically I am, Simon. Who would be our leader then…you?" Alvin asked.

"I'd make a better leader than you, all you care about is yourself!" Simon yelled.

"You're such an idiot!" Alvin argued.

"Oh that's ironic coming from you," Simon said as the two brothers glared at each other.

"Come on guys, I thought after Alvin's touching speech that things would be more cheerful," Jeanette said.

"Cheerful, how could anything be cheerful under the leadership of a pompous, arrogant, egotistical…" Simon said in fury.

"We're doomed," Eleanor said rolling her eyes.

Alvin was about to argue back when his star guide started to glow brighter than before. The silence crept up once again as each member of the Gathering stared out towards the open area in which the star guide was pointing towards.

The day suddenly turned to night and thousands of stars appeared in the sky. It looked like they were calling out to the Gathering. The stars were screaming out their destinies and the Gathering could hear all of them. They knew in their hearts the time had come.

Theodore looked at his brothers, the chipettes, and all the members in the Gathering. They were all wondering what their next step should be. The tension was so thick and the only thing that was heard was the sound the star guides were making. The chipmunk's hearts were pounding, each not knowing what the future would hold for them.

This was the day their calling, their destiny. In the eyes of everyone in the Gathering was an intensity that was never seen before. Alvin turned to them.

"Let's go," he said as he was about to walk forward, but Simon stopped him.

"Wait Alvin…I have an idea," he said with a smile.

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The time had come, the star guides were shining their brightest. Alvin walked out and saw Lyra's Point. Finally, everything they had worked for came down to this. The Destiny Star was about a metre away from touching the point. Simon patted Alvin on the back.

"There it is," he said as he pointed to a rock formation that was structured like a harp with a monstrously, super-colossal, bright shining star almost at its point..

Alvin walked into to the open area, but stopped in fear when he saw what awaited him on the other side. Simon was about to ask him what was wrong when he saw the horrifying image.

"..._your end will come...your end will come...your end will come..._"

Alvin looked into the eyes of over 500 giant monsters and demons ready to attack. They couldn't believe it. And the one person who stood in front of them like a leader was the monster who had been watching them through their whole journey.

"Your journey ends here!" he yelled.

"Who are you!" Alvin growled.

"You may call me Soulspaun the Demonic!"

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A/N: Only a few more chapters left. Sorry for the really late updates. I'm hoping to finish the story soon. If I don't, then see you when I do. Please tell me what you think.

Till next time…C ya

Atomos Infinity


	15. Shattered Destinies

Hey guys, I know it's been a while…a long while. But I'm still alive and I'm ready to continue on with my story. I hope I haven't lost all my readers. NEway enjoy.

_Shattered Destinies_

'The…Demonic?' Theodore pondered as the name sent shivers up his spine. Clearly, this was no mere human they were dealing with. Yet, that was the least of their worries for hundreds of crazed beast were snarling and growling in rage ready to attack as soon as they were given the ordered.

Every single member of the Gathering was quivering in fear and believed they would die today. They could not see any possible way of getting out of here alive. One girl fell down to her knees and started praying as other fell to their knees and cried.

'It's hopeless. We are going to die, today…' Jeanette stated what everyone else knew. Alvin turned towards the Gathering he was destined to protect and knew what was in their hearts. He was so angry.

"You monster!! The Gathering are just children! Why do you want to harm us? We have done nothing to you!"

"You are wrong. You're kind has done so much to me. You have kept absolute power away from this world. The one thing all life has tried to obtain is absolute power. That is all one desires for and your kind has kept that power all to yourself. Why is it that all life on this pitiful world must die while your kind live forever? Are you better than the rest of us? I contain so much power, that I can hold all of these creatures behind me with my simple magic, and I can unleash their fury upon you in a simple wave of a finger. Yet I like all other life will die one day."

"We hold the ability to become immortal because we live in peace and fate has entrusted us to look over the Destiny Star so that it will not be used for evil, which you will most certainly use it for."

"Theodore, I want you to quietly move the Gathering back into the forest," Simon gently whispered to his younger brother. "Your weapon is good for long range so you'd be affective from there."

"Are you planning for us to fight all those monsters by ourselves?" Theodore asked in a whisper while Alvin continued to exchange words with the enemy.

"I don't think we have a choice. Alvin's talking has bought me some time to think of a few ideas, but they all involve us fighting. I'm just hoping our plan results in the fewest casualties…even if it does mean my own. That's all we can hope for."

"Ok, good luck Simon. And…if everything doesn't go as planned…I just want you to know that you and Alvin mean the world to me and I love you."

"I love you too," Simon replied. The brothers shared a quiet bonding moment as Alvin continued talking to the Demonic.

"Good and evil are just words. The minds of living creatures are far more complex than those simple descriptions. I will just use my power as I see fit and if others get in my way then their life shall be sacrificed for my good."

"There was once a time when I would have believed in what you said. But, when you use that sort of power to help yourself by hurting others instead of helping others; that makes you an evil I will fight against."

"Then you will die!!" the Demonic roared as he waved his hand unleashing the fury of the monsters which raced towards the Gathering with great speed.

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"Everyone run to the forest!!!" Theodore screamed as the Gathering, who had already received instructions on Simon's plan, raced towards the giant trees.

When the monsters started getting closer, Simon ran up to Alvin, pushed him out of the way and then raised his hands concentrating all his energy. Suddenly, Alvin could hear the sounds of rushing water. And then Simon screamed out his attack. "Waves of Neptune!!" and suddenly from beyond the forest behind him, a magnificent tidal wave came flying out from the trees right in between the Gathering and the monster's in the middle of Lyra's point. Because there was a small chasm around the Lyra's point rock formation, the water created a small pond.

"Simon, the monsters are going to get over the water anyway. What was the point of that!?"

"For one thing, it buys us some time," he said simply as he pointed behind him to the Gathering who were all safe in the woods. "And for the other thing, it evens the odds…with this."

"The flute of Atlantis!!" Alvin exclaimed in shock.

"I know it's unsafe to summon Atlas against these unbelievable enemies, but..."

Simon was silenced as Alvin snatched the flute from his hands and blew into it with all his might filling the whole battlefield with the same wondrous, abnormal animal call the Gathering had heard that fateful day when they reached the Colossus Ocean.

.

"There, I saved you ten minutes of pointless thinking," Alvin joked. Simon growled, but then diverted his attention to the pond where that same animal call was heard once again. Then as the monsters were making their way across, some of them were swallowed up by a whirlpool and from the centre of the whirlpool, an all too familiar sea serpent rose from the water.

"Atlas!!!" Eleanor exclaimed. The members of the Gathering who had not been facing the battlefield, including Jeanette and Brittany turned their heads to see the mighty creature.

"All enemies of my allies shall be crushed!" he roared as he motioned around the pond creating a tidal wave over a few of the monsters that were reaching the pond's centre.

Alvin and Simon rushed to the edge of the pond. Atlas turned to them and smiled. "I had a feeling you would need a little help so I called up an old friend."

"An old friend?" the two chipmunks looked at each other in confusion. Suddenly a deafening roar could be heard from the bottom of the pond.

"Well not exactly a friend. More like an enemy of our enemy. Someone who was terribly angry that he was being manipulated," Atlas said softly and then rising from the pond came the bull-like Catoblepas full of rage and anger.

The Demonic who had been waiting patiently as his evil creatures headed off to kill the Gathering now rose from his seat with a smile. "Now things are getting interesting."

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Dave came out of his house and saw a bunch of the villagers standing together looking out at the sky. Many of them were crying and others were trying to support them. He approached the group and went over to talk to one of the men.

"What's wrong?"

"Can't you feel it Dave? Can't you see it? The Destiny Star has disappeared over the horizon. In a few minutes, it will touch the ground."

"Yes, then this should be a moment of celebration."

"Then why do we tremble? Even you; I can see your whole body shaking and your heart beat pace quickening. Something bad is going to happen to all our children. We should never have let them leave the village. We are the ones who are immortal, we should have been the ones to face up against this threat," he said out loud with many of the villagers agreeing with him.

Dave looked towards the worried faces. Fear was a common theme upon them, even on his own. "I know you feel the same way, Dave."

"…maybe so. But, if we did this, what lesson would we be teaching future generations? For many years are elders have taught us lesson's beyond our wisdom. They showed us courage, compassion and love. But I must say that I had learned the most of their teachings on our quest for the Destiny Star. I had learned more about myself in that time than I have throughout my life and it has made me become a better person. If we take this quest away from our children, then we rob future generations of the dependence and guidance they will seek from our children.

The order of the world has been disrupted; but this is not our fight. This is their fight and if they manage to succeed think how strong they will become. Think of what great people they will become. Strength doesn't always rely on immortality," Dave spoke words of great wisdom, which relaxed the villagers. But one of the women approached him.

"I fear the worst is yet to come. Something…something terrible will happen."

"Then we must pray for their safety."

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The Gathering watched in fear from a distance as the two chipmunks went into the pond full of monsters in the heat of battle. Jeanette was buried in the arms of Eleanor as Brittany turned her head away from the fight and continued to stare at the Starlight flower Alvin had given her and took this as a symbol that he would come back to her. She held the flower with one hand and the other hand held tightly to Sapphire's hand who was staring back towards the battle.

"Everyone, stay back! If Simon calculated this properly, then the pond's distance is in my range. Let's just hope my aiming is accurate."

"You can do it Theodore, I believe in you," Eleanor stated confidently. Some other members in the Gathering joined Eleanor in cheering from him. Theodore smiled and prepared his bow.

Alvin and Simon moved like the wind and ran into battle with the many monsters. Not wasting any seconds, they attack one monster and immediately moved onto the next. They used their magic, but while Simon's water magic was more effective in the pond, Alvin had to resort to more physical attacks, which was fine with him.

He used his sword to slice open a raging horned beast and then did a back flip leaping over a water eel. He ducked under the water avoiding to other creatures. One of the few advantages of fighting these many monsters was that the battlefield was too packed and restricted a lot of spaces for the monsters to move especially the bigger monsters. And because they were in the pond it hindered the monster's movements even more.

Alvin looked up and saw a long beaked large bird heading straight for him, but before it could attack him with its rugged beak; it was impaled by two arrows that came from a distance. "Thanks Theodore," he said quietly, for he didn't have a chance to turn around before another ten crammed monsters came rushing for him.

"It is useless, Guardians. In matter of moments, the Destiny Star will touch the ground and while you busy yourselves fighting, I shall gain immortality and destroy you all," he exclaimed.

Suddenly, the beast of the land and sea, the dreaded Catoblepas charged back and forth knocking and trampling over countless monsters in a heat of fury. And then he raced towards the Demonic at full speed, but the evil monster teleported out of the way before any harm could come to him.

And almost immediately after it had missed him, the Catoblepas was attacked by more of the creatures.

"It's…it's impossible. There are just so many monsters," Ashley from the Gathering said from behind Theodore.

"Please Theodore, let me fight too. Let me help Alvin and Simon. I can't let them die out there," Richie, one of the older boys from the Gathering, asked. Some of the other boys started to agree with him.

"I can't. We are here to protect you. The only time you guys can fight is when it's our last resort. Till then, please help the others," he said calmly.

Eleanor couldn't believe how much Theodore had changed. At the beginning of this journey, he was afraid of almost everything, but now, as she saw him fighting monsters so bravely and making decisions so wisely, she couldn't believe this was the same chipmunk from before.

"Theo…"

"I'm just glad I have a lot of arrows," the flustered chipmunk said as he fired his arrows rapidly at the many beasts that managed to get through the pond and were racing towards them. They were mostly flying creatures, but Theodore had grown really well in his accuracy that it usually took one arrow, sometimes two, to bring down the monster.

"Right now, it seems like the evil demon is going to win. I can't even see a way that we will win. We should be running not fighting!" Jeanette said.

"Calm her down, Eleanor. I'm sorry, but I have to concentrate," Theodore said.

"If only Miss Miller were here," Brittany whispered as she let go of Sapphire's hand and fell to her knees burying her hands in her face. "We can't win. All of this was for nothing."

As Theodore continued firing his arrows, the other members of the Gathering were watching so intensely that no one noticed the young girl that slipped away from the Gathering moving deeper into the forest.

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Atlas roared sending a leathal water blast knocking out many monsters, but as quickly as the monsters were defeated, that left more room for other monsters to enter. Simon fell to his knees. He had been scratched across the chest by the sharp claws of a tiger creature.

Blood was dripping from his chest as it left a mark through his fur. He didn't have much time to cringe over the pain, because of the other monsters, so he placed his hands in the pond and created a whirlpool sucking up the creatures in the water.

There were quite a number of monsters that remained on the land because they would sink when they entered the water so they just waited. But the Demonic was not part of them. He quickly floated over the water and in the midst of the Gathering's battle; he flew over to the rock formation of Lyra's point.

And then, when he reached the rock formation, he had the monsters stop their fighting. Alvin, Simon and the rest of the Gathering had wondered why they would stop; until they looked up and saw their worst fear realized.

The magnificent Destiny Star had finally touched the ground. It was truly beautiful in all its glory. A glowing golden ball that illuminated the entire battlefield in its glistening glow. But beside it, stood Soulspaun the Demonic with his hand just about touching the star.

"You are about to witness a new era beyond anything you have seen before; an era of immortality and power. Be prepared, for everlasting glory," he said as he moved his hand closer to the star.

"NOOOO!!!!" the Gathering screamed, but just before the Demonic's hand touched the star. Something small came firing out of the forest behind the Gathering right towards the Destiny star and this strange small, fast being touched the Destiny Star at the exact moment that the Demonic did.

In an instant, Soulspaun and the small being felt something upon contact. A strange feeling flooded through their body like an ocean filling them with an amazing sensation, and then soon, it finished and both of them fell to the ground.

After the intense moment was over, Simon got a clear look at the small being that had touched the Destiny Star and his eyes widened in amazement. "SAPPHIRE!!" he screamed in amazement.

Theodore and the other members of the Gathering looked behind them, and saw that the girl who they thought was with them the whole time was indeed out on the battlefield.

"No way…" Alvin whispered to himself.

Simon rose to his feet to see the deaf girl he had found in the forest. Now, she had touched the Destiny Star. She must've been immortal now. But when he saw both her and the Demonic were knocked out, he knew something was terribly wrong.

Suddenly, the Destiny Star that had touched the ground for only a moment turned pitch black filling the field in the darkness of night. Then it rose up from the ground. The Gathering watched in great amazement as the Destiny Star shattered into a million pieces.

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A/N: Tell me what ya think. Hopefully the long long wait was well worth it. Neway, plz read and review. I'll try to get the next one up as soon as I can.

Till next time

Atomos Infinity


	16. Return of the Dragon Knight

Here we go, next chapter :)

_Return of the Dragon Knight_

"What just happened?" one of the members of the Gathering asked after a terribly long moment of disbelief.

"Nearest I could tell, the evil demonic guy was about to touch the Destiny Star when Sapphire flew from the trees in the forest towards the star and touching it at the same time he did. Then the Destiny Star turned pitch black and shattered," Jeanette stated in amazement.

"Theo, is this good or bad?" Eleanor asked him.

Theodore didn't respond for a moment as he tried to recollect his thoughts, and then he answered. "Either way you look at this, it's really bad"

"Oh great! Now we're never going to hear the end of it. We are the ones who broke the Destiny Star. That's an excellent way to go down in history," Richie spoke sarcastically.

"I wonder if Sapphire's ok…'

"The monsters have stopped moving. I think Soulspaun is unconscious like Sapphire. Theodore, we have to do something. Sapphire is too close to Soulspaun and if he comes to, he'll kill her in a second," Eleanor stated.

"Alvin! Simon! Are you ok?" Theodore called out.

Alvin rose to his feet and looked back at his younger brother waving his hand symbolizing he was fine. Atlas approached him. "I have never seen anything like this. A star coming down from the sky and exploding into a million pieces. I think it's time someone told me what was going on," the confused sea serpent stated as Alvin climbed up on him.

"This has never happened in any of the books I have read. The star was supposed to be immortal, it could not explode. Was it because someone outside our tribe touched it? Was it because it was the start of the new Millennium? Nothing here makes any sense," Simon chattered to himself as he flipped through his book rapidly.

"Hey Simon, what do you think you're doing? If you haven't noticed, Sapphire is still unconscious," Alvin said as he and Atlas moved closer to the tip of Lyra's point.

"Sapphire…" Simon said softly as he quickly followed them.

When they reached Sapphire, Simon picked her up and carried her in his arms. She looked in really bad shape. Sweat had appeared on her forehead and her body felt really warm. She most likely had a fever. And she was breathing heavily, but she was breathing so it was a good sign.

"What should we do now, Simon?" Alvin asked.

"Why are you asking me? Aren't you the leader?"

"Don't make this harder than it should be."

"Fine," Simon replied with a stifled giggle. "Anyway, it looks like Sapphire will be ok. Since the Destiny Star isn't here anymore, it probably would be better to get back to Dave as soon as we can.

"After so long, the sky now looks…kinda empty without it," Alvin replied jumping off of Atlas onto the Lyra's point rock formation.

"Wait! Before we go further, I want to know what's going on," Atlas stated.

"Ok, I guess since the Destiny Star is gone, we can tell you. It all started when our father Dave, chose…" Simon was interrupted when he heard the piercing screech of a loud beast.

Everyone in the Gathering looked towards the creature of the land and Sea, the Catoblepas. Horrible cries filled the silent air as it began stomping around with great rage screaming in madness.

"What's wrong with it?" Alvin commented.

"…it's in terrible pain," Atlas spoke, mostly to himself.

"What?"

"The Catoblepas is in pain!" Atlas screamed out as he rushed to the maddened monster.

"He doesn't look in pain to me…he just looks crazy."

"No my friend, there is something in his mind. I can sense it. There's something destroying his mind!!" Atlas said almost by his side. But before he could reach the Catoblepas, its body was completely sliced in half.

Everyone watched in fear as the two halves of this mighty creature fell limply to the ground.

"Nooooo!!!!' Atlas cried out as they reached the dead body.

"What happened?" Simon asked in shock. Suddenly, a cold chill came up his spine as he turned to where the unconscious body of Soulspaun was supposed to be. There, he saw the piercing red eyes of the tyrant floating in the air with lightning encircling him.

"All of you should be honoured to have witness the first murder of what shall be known as my new era. An era that shall last forever," he said in a dark voice. "Now that the Destiny Star is destroyed, I shall be the only being with immortality and none of you will have the strength to stop me," he commanded with a maniacal laugh.

"You demon! I will kill you!!!" Atlas roared as he was about to attack, but suddenly, he felt a terrible headache. It felt as if his brain was pulsing and growing and he started to scream in the same maddening way the Catoblepas had done just a few minutes before.

"Atlas!! No!!!" the Gathering cried from the distance.

"Go ahead and try to kill me, mortal. I am sure I will have fun just the same. With my unmatched power and now my newly acquired immortality, all of you will perish in the same manner as the traitorous Catoblepas before you," he said with a superior grin. "Now, let's see how much my power exceeds the legendary sea monster of Colossus."

Atlas' mind was splitting apart. He could feel the inside of his body splitting and knew in a matter of seconds, he would die.

"I won't let you win that easily!" Alvin said as he swung his sword across the chest of the Demonic making him lose focus and dropping his spell on Atlas just before the sea serpent was going to blackout. Atlas sunk to the bottom of the pond exhausted.

"So, you are eager to die as well. Don't worry, I will not submit you to the same fate as the Catoblepas. Instead of killing you all myself, I will watch as my minions do it for me," he laughed as he released his hold on the monsters.

Once freed, the vicious monsters raced after both Alvin and Simon once again. Alvin fell to his knees. He was so exhausted and his muscles were worn out. Neither he nor Simon could face these creatures again, let alone an immortal being along with them.

"We've lost…" Alvin said quietly.

"You guys stay here," Theodore said as he raced out towards the battlefield.

"Theodore, what are you doing?"

"Eleanor's right. You should stay here. Your weapons are good from long range," Jeanette stated.

"I'm not going to stay here while my brothers die out there. I just can't do that. No matter what happens, all of you just stay in the forest! " he said and then ran towards the pond.

A giant wolf creature sunk his teeth into Alvin's arm and he screamed out in pain. Simon was using his water ability in the pond to shield the unconscious Sapphire as he fought off the monsters.

"Everything is as it should be. The world is now as it should be," Soulspaun said to himself in approval.

"Spirits of the Wind come forth!!!" the voice of the chubby chipmunk was heard as wind creatures whisked through the battlefield carrying off many of the monsters. Theodore reached Lyra's point where Alvin was worn out and completely weakened.

"Theo…"

"Don't worry Alvin, I'm not letting you go," he replied to his older brother. But as he held onto him, three monsters attacked him slashing him in the back and making him cry out in pain.

"Theodore!! No!!" Eleanor screamed as she was about to run out. Luckily, Jeanette stopped her.

"There's nothing you can do Eleanor," Jeanette said sadly.

"Let go of me!! Let go of me, Jeanette!!!" she screamed. Some of the other members had to help Jeanette restrain her and in the end, Eleanor fell to her knees and started crying hysterically.

"…I'm sorry Eleanor."

"He promised me. He promised me he wasn't going to die!!!!"

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Soulspaun watched in approval as Alvin and Theodore were going to succumb to his monsters. He saw how much fun the creatures were having tearing these young children apart and he decided that he would have some fun too.

He looked over to Simon who was still trying to protect Sapphire with his water magic, but his energy was almost out. He closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment. Then, using his magic, he disarmed Simon's defences.

"…you won't win," Simon said as he fell on the ground. Soulspaun laughed maniacally as he charged towards him intending to kill.

"Simon!!!!" Jeanette screamed along with others in the Gathering as the monster was just about to strike him. But suddenly, no impact came. In fact, the evil creature had been knocked backwards.

Everyone looked to see what had happened and when they did, a smile appeared on their face.

"Sapphire!" the Gathering cheered. Eleanor looked up and saw the young six-year-old standing in front of Simon with her hands stretched out in order to protect him. Her light blue eyes stared at the Demonic monster with hatred.

Soulspaun called off his monsters once again, which was a good thing because Theodore and Alvin would have died if he didn't. "So you are the thing that flew from the trees and touched the Destiny Star, and thus have been blessed like me to become immortal."

She didn't respond. Even if she had heard what he had said, she wouldn't have responded to him. She saw the terrible things he had done to the Gathering, her included. Only a monster could be that cruel. She just remained in that position. She would protect Simon forever if she had to.

"We shouldn't be fighting. We are immortal now. We are gods among men! It is senseless to fight a battle you cannot win. Look at the Gathering. They are fighting in a battle they cannot win. They are all dying for a pointless cause. Defeating an immortal is unimaginable. It is impossible. Wouldn't you agree?"

When Sapphire didn't respond to him, he understood that she did not understand what he was saying. "I'll give you a choice, child. Stand by my side and rule this pathetic world with me, or serve me as a slave. Either way suits me fine. What do you say?" he said as he extended his hand to her.

As soon as he did this, she instantly slapped it away. She hated him and that would never change. Never. Soulspaun growled under his breath. He remembered how she had ruined his moment of glory. How she had just went up and touched the Destiny Star as if it were a mere game.

"Fine, if you will not join me, then you will be my slave. But first, you will watch as I slaughter each and every member of the Gathering starting with that meaningless chipmunk behind you."

Sapphire started to tremble. She was still just a young girl and she didn't want to lose Simon, but what could she do? All she could think of was standing in front of him and being his shield. But as Soulspaun was gathering his energy to create a giant blast, she couldn't help but feel scared.

"Say goodbye to the worthless chipmunk behind you. He is about to die a very painful death. Embers of Malice!! Unleashed!!!"

But before Soulspaun could reveal his attack, something he heard stopped him in his tracks. Sapphire looked at him curiously because she couldn't hear the sound. But the members of the Gathering heard it. And when they did, their gazes followed Soulspaun's gaze into the sky. For what they heard was the beating of wings; the beating of giant wings.

And what they saw stunned them all. It was a dragon.

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The immortal beast of fire was descending down towards the battlefield. The Gathering could remember the creature perfectly. They could never forget the rock hard red scales that covered the immense body, nor could they forget the two large horns on the top of its forehead. Yes it was exactly the same…except for one thing. There was something different about this one. Then, Jeanette figured out what it was. There was someone on top of the creature. A chipmunk was on the dragon.

Everyone watched in silence as the dragon landed on the ground beside Sapphire and Simon and then shortly after, the chipmunk jumped off the dragon's back. Sapphire looked closely at the older chipmunk. He was taller than Simon, but not by much. He had a kind face and his brown hair ran to his shoulders, but what caught her attention were his mesmerizing, almost hypnotic yellow eyes. He looked so familiar, yet she couldn't tell from where.

"Hmm, that's strange. I thought all the Dragon knights were dead. If you had come several minutes earlier, I would have been frightened, but now, you're just another witness to watch my rise to everlasting supremacy. You must be very brave to approach me in the manner you are," the Demonic commented confidently.

"For now, you're fight is with me, so leave the Gathering out of this and call off your monsters," he said calmly, yet still with a lot of force.

"You will not order me. I am all powerful. I am a god!!!" he roared.

"Remove your monsters or I will make them go away!" he roared back at him. Soulspaun had a sadistic grin.

"Monsters, tear him apart," he ordered as he released his magical hold. The monstrous creatures were now racing towards this mysterious chipmunk. But he did not flinch.

He placed his hand in his pocket as if he was looking for something. Then he pulled out a strange small box about the size of an engagement ring box. He opened up the box where there were many tiny spheres inside. He picked up one of the spheres and threw it in front of him.

The sphere created a huge blinding light and then it had transformed into a portal. And in a flash, the hideous creatures that were unleashed by Soulspaun had been sucked into the portal and were now forever lost in an unknown dimension. And just like that, the battlefield had been swept clean by this mysterious chipmunk. Not a single evil monster was left.

"What have you done? My monsters…gone."

"I thought you would thank me. Now you can show all of us how strong you are," the chipmunk said with a smile.

"Don't you worry, I will," Soulspaun growled.

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"Do you know that person?" Eleanor asked the other members of the Gathering who watched with great interest.

"No, but he's incredible. He killed all of those monsters and he's going to kill that evil monster," one of the girls stated in awe.

"Finally, for the first time, we have hope," Jeanette replied.

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The mysterious chipmunk looked at Sapphire for a moment until her eyes were locked onto his. Then there was a long and strange moment of silence where the young girl and the older chipmunk just stared at each other, which would make one believe that there was more to this moment of exchanging looks than one would see.

After the moment of just staring at each other, Sapphire nodded her head as if she had agreed on something, and then, without sparing a moment, she rushed over to the gravely injured Alvin and Theodore.

"Where do you think you are going?" Soulspaun started.

"Your battle is with me so leave Sapphire out of this. If you can kill me, then it will only be a matter of time before you kill them too, so for now, let them be."

"Very well, I will. Wiping your blood from my sword and armour will be much more enjoyable."

"Fine but before you do, I have a present for you," the chipmunk said with a smile as he placed to fingers between his lips and whistled. When he did this, the giant winged beast behind him roared charged into battle against the dark bronze armoured beast.

Sapphire and reached the two chipmunk brothers and helped Theodore on his feet. Alvin had just enough strength to walk on his own, but his brother had sacrificed a lot to save him. "Thanks Theo. Besides me, you're the bravest chipmunk I know," he said with a smile.

"I guess sometimes...fears can make you stronger. Out of all the scariest things in my life, losing you in that creepy dimension was the scariest. I could never let that happen again…I would never let that happen again," the weak chipmunk whispered as he let himself be carried by Sapphire and Alvin.

Simon finally rose to his feet and watched as the dragon battled the immortal being. Simon, one who prided himself in knowing every bit of understanding and explanations in a situation, could not believe the events that had taken part on this day.

The mysterious owner of the dragon ran towards Simon. "I'm glad I made it in time, I actually didn't think you would last as long as you did, especially without the Destiny Star."

"…who are…you?" Simon asked through his exhaustion.

"Malix Tidalar," Alvin, who was with Sapphire carrying Theodore, replied from behind him.

"It's good to see you again, Alvin."

"Malix…" Simon was completely awestruck.

"It is unfortunate that we cannot talk under better circumstances. Very soon, my dragon will give out and I will have to fight him myself, but before I do, I want you to get back to your Gathering and head back to Goliath, land of the Giants. From there, your Gathering can hide and you can find out where the Destiny Star is."

"…the Destiny…? Umm, I guess you weren't here when it happened, but the Destiny Star exploded," Alvin stated as he tried to shake Simon out of his trance state.

"If the Destiny Star is destroyed, why are your star-guides still glowing so brightly?"

They hadn't realized it, but what Malix said was true. The star-guides that Dave had given them to track down the Destiny Star were still glowing. They did not send out radar which could show them the way to the star, like they did before, but the star-guides were still glowing powerfully.

"I do not know what is going on, but I know that the star-guides hold the very essence of the Destiny Star within them. If they are glowing, then the star is alive. That is all I know. Now I am prepared to die if I must. Good luck, Guardians of the Gathering," he said as he raced off towards the two warring creatures.

Just before he reached the battle, he looked back and saw Alvin and the others racing towards the forest. He smiled when he saw the young immortal human girl following them. "Goodbye Sapphire. I am sure your dear mother knows how strong and wise you have become. She would be proud of you darling. As am I."

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A/N: Wow, that was a lot. Hopefully things aren't too confusing. I've gotta say this. Thank you for all the reviews!!!!:) :) :) I love you guys!! You guys are AWESOME and I'm so glad you are loving this fic. And if there are confusing stuff in this chap, it'll all be explained soon. Anyway THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS!!!! I LOVE THIS STORY TOO!!!!

Till next time…


	17. Separation

Heyo guys. I know it's been awhile and you probably thought I disappeared again. Really sorry. I know whats going to happen in the story, I just can't seem to put it in words. I don't know if this sorta thing happens to anyone else, but I'm sorry. So please bear with me.

* So it's pretty clear Malix has a history with Sapphire. But remember Malix is a chipmunk and Sapphire is human. The rules of biology don't really work. So he can't be Sapphire's father. Then what is he to her…? More info on Malix comin up. Keep reading ;)

_Separation_

"But…what about Atlas…?"

"He's still alive isn't he? Alvin saved him, I'm sure of it. Are we just gonna leave him here?"

"I really want to help him, but every second we waste talking here is another second Malix is fighting desperately just so we can be safe," Simon replied to a boy in the Gathering.

"Simon's right. If we don't leave now, then he's sacrificing himself for nothing. Let's return to Goliath," Alvin stated leaning on Brittany's shoulder as she helped him to walk. "We don't have much time, now let's go!" he said more forcefully.

The Gathering obeyed his orders and started rushing back into the forest. But a few of the children were just petrified. Alvin wanted to be mad at them for not listeninng, but how could he blame them? After all, they were just kids. Some were no older than four when they face these struggles between dragons and monsters.

They were definitely lucky that a few of the older girls took on a 'mothering' role to try and keep the children comfortable and Brittany and the Chipettes helped them occasionally as well.

Alvin went up to the younger children and smiled. "Don't worry little guys, everything will be fine," he said with a comforting smile.

The little ones looked up at him, some of them with teary eyes, others with confused looks and a few others just shaking and afraid. But this warm smile from Alvin relaxed their fears and the children allowed themselves to be taken with the others back to the forest, back towards Land of the Giants.

"Do you really believe that, Alvin?" Brittany asked carrying him further away from the battle.

Alvin looked back where Malix's dragon and the immortal Soulspaun were fighting in deadly combat on a battlefield where the beautiful Destiny Star had once appeared, and all the chipmunk could do was shake his head.

"I don't believe in anything anymore."

1010101

Malix Tidalar watched as his dragon tumbled to the ground. It wasn't dead, it couldn't die; dragons were immortal. But although it was uncharacteristic for a simple creature to hold such great power, Malix wasn't scared. He knew every second that Soulspaun remained here was another second for the Gathering to escape.

He had seen them race into the forest behind him several minutes ago and now all he needed to do was waste time. And just encase something unfortunate happened, he had a back up plan he would use only as his last option.

"Let me ask you a few questions, dragon owner?" the demonic being started sadistically. "How could an immortal beast lose to someone such as myself? How could an everlasting flaming dragon fall in my hands? And finally, why do you not tremble at the frightful sight you see before you?"

Malix did not reply, he just took out a huge lance from his hidden cloak and charged towards him.

Soulspaun flipped over him and sent a mighty kick to his stomach, then he jumped and used a spin kick colliding his foot across Malix's cheek sending him flying back towards his dragon. Then with great speed, he rushed up to Malix and starting pounding his fists into the gut section.

"Is this all the Universe can do to stop me?"

1010101

As the Gathering rushed through the forest, Simon's eyes were constantly glued to his book ingesting every word written on the page. He was so focused on it as he ran that he tripped over a tree stump and fell flat on his face. When Alvin saw this he started laughing out loud.

"Simon, are you ok?" Jeanette asked as she rushed towards him.

"Fine," he muttered.

"Finally, a disaster your book caused rather than prevented. Guess you're a bigger nerd than I thought."

"Shut up Alvin! If you didn't already look half-dead I would…" he started but then thought it best not to argue. He knew this wasn't the time.

"Did you forget what you were going to say? Maybe that fall broke a few of your 'oh so precious' brain cells," his brother joked.

"Ok that's it!!!" Simon said as he rose to his feet.

"Come on guys, we don't have time for this; especially not Theodore," Eleanor said as she walked beside a boy named Jake in the Gathering who was carrying the sleeping Guardian.

"Well, we're far enough from Lyra's point now, and we'll reach Goliath in about half an hour if we walk from here. So I think it's ok," Jeanette stated.

A girl from the Gathering walked beside Sapphire. The girl had been around immortals all her life, but for some reason, Sapphire was different from the people in her village. She still had to be immortal by the way she protected Simon and stood up to Soulspaun, but Sapphire was far different from any other immortal she had seen.

Simon picked up his book that had fallen to the ground and quickly recovered the page he was on and then continued following the Gathering.

"Simon, what were you looking at in your book that made you lose your focus on your surroundings?' Jeanette asked.

"This is the very same book that the chipmunk back there, who is risking his life for us, wrote. I was looking up on the Dragon Slayers or Dragon Knights as they preferred to be called. Malix wrote that they were a civilization of people living deep inside the caves of Dragon Mountain who were able to control dragons with their mere thoughts. They were linked telepathically to them and were the reasons why the dragons rarely left the mountain."

"But Malix was flying a dragon when he came, does that mean he was a Dragon Knight?" Eleanor asked.

"Wait, there's more. The whole Dragon Knight race was said to have been wiped out by a mysterious fire that destroyed their homes at the base of the volcano. Not even a trace of them was found."

"…that magic Malix did to destroy all of Soulspaun's army…that looked a lot like a portal…" Jake thought independently.

"Portal…you're right. It was just like the portal Sapphire had in her blue box," Simon stated as he turned to the immortal girl.

She became a little nervous because she had no idea what everyone was talking about.

(Sapphire, have you ever, in your life, seen the chipmunk that saved us,) Simon questioned.

(No, he's a complete stranger. I've definitely never seen him before,) she replied.

(But…he used the same type of portal magic you did to help Alvin from the lost dimension. Also, didn't Alvin tell us Malix opened a portal and rescued him before Atlar Castle exploded?)

(I admit I thought the people from my village were the only ones who could use portals, and that was what my grandmother taught me. But the chipmunk back there is definitely, not from my village, I'm positive,) Sapphire signalled.

Simon gave it up. Once again he reached a dead end with a couple more mysteries thrown at him.

"Wait a minute Simon, when was that book made?" Richie asked.

"It's one of the oldest books in our village, why?" he replied casually. Suddenly, everyone in the Gathering looked at him in astonishment.

"How old…?" Alvin asked softly.

"At least four hundred...years old…" Simon said as he finally understood the reason for the question about the book and its creator. The Gathering turned their heads back to the pathway that led to Lyra's point.

"Who is that guy?"

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Soulspaun grew tired of his continuous assault and threw the weak and tired chipmunk to the ground. He could feel the presence of the Gathering slipping away and although he didn't care too much of what their plans might be, he wanted to savour and enjoy their pain.

He turned to Malix who was slowly getting up. This was pretty amusing to him. "By now, you should know that it is impossible for you to win. You can barely stand up. How do you expect to fight an invincible being as myself? You should be thankful that I'm willing to put an end to your misery."

And in less than a second, Soulspaun stabbed Malix piercing through his skin and impaling his heart. "Game over," he said with a smile as the body fell to the ground. But his smile was instantly erased when the chipmunk rose from his feet and pulled the sword out of his heart as if it were a toy and threw it on the ground in front of him.

"So…you are immortal."

"I am."

"I don't know whether it makes this fight interesting or pointless."

"I will never let you kill the Gathering."

Soulspaun grabbed his sword firmly in his hand and pointed it at the immortal chipmunk. "Then that will make this fight interesting."

1010101

Theodore woke up and noticed that Jake of the Gathering was carrying him. The last thing he remembered was that he was on his deathbed trying to protect Alvin by any means possible. Now for some reason, the Gathering was walking in a forest without any monsters around.

He winced as he felt the scars on his arms taking their effect. This action caught Eleanor's attention. "Great, you're up Theodore, how are you feeling?"

"…hungry. Really hungry."

"I haven't heard you say that in a while," Jeanette chuckled a little.

"You can have some berries I picked from a bush back there," one of the younger girls in the Gathering said handing him a sack of purple berries.

Theodore graciously accepted them and began filling his appetite while being in formed about everything that had happened by Eleanor.

Suddenly, a bright beam shot out of the three star guides each pointing in a different direction. Theodore's star guide pointed west, Alvin's pointed east and Simon's pointed back to the Land of the Giants.

The three guardians looked at each other with extreme worry. "The star guides are pointing in three different directions," Brittany stated. "I think it wants us to split up."

"That would be the most logical way if we wanted to get all the parts of the Destiny Star before Malix finishes battling with Soulspaun," Simon thought.

"No way!! Dave would kill us if he knew what you were thinking. Especially at a time like this."

"Alvin's right, we can't split up. Now that Soulspaun is immortal if he found any of us, we're as good as dead," a boy from the Gathering said.

"I don't like it as much as you but we don't have a choice. Besides, if this is a way for the Destiny Star to contact us than…"

"Oh!! Wake up Simon! The Destiny Star is not here for us. It is an inanimate object that grants immortality to whoever touches it. There's no magic. That's just what it does and nothing will change that. If it was on our side Soulspaun wouldn't be immortal. It can't control who can touch it. And it doesn't know how much trouble we went through and how much we sacrificed by coming here," Alvin said the final part solemnly remembering the Catoblepas and Atlas who were now suffering for that stupid inanimate object. The Gathering fell silent, but the light on the guides still shined.

"It didn't help us then and I doubt it'll help us now," Jake agreed. "Besides, Theo is hurt."

"…Jake's right, maybe we should just try to get back home," Ashley of the Gathering said.

"But we have to do something now!" Theodore said as he got off Jake's back.

"Theo…."

"The Destiny Star is our responsibility, Alvin. Maybe what you said about the Destiny Star is true. Maybe it is just a lifeless object, but if it is, then that should give us a greater reason to stop Soulspaun. If a ball is thrown and breaks a mirror, do you blame the ball or the person who threw it?" he asked. The Gathering once again was left speechless. "We are the Millennium Gathering. It was our mistake and others had to pay for it. We have to set things right."

Eleanor smiled and held his hand. "Theodore's right. We weren't strong enough to beat him when we were together anyway, if we're not going to split, he'll catch up to us. We might as well try the option most likely to work."

From Theodore's speech, the Gathering started gaining hope. Alvin smiled at his younger brother's courage. "Thanks Theo," he replied with his brother smiling back at him. "I guess you're probably going to need this," he said handing Theodore the flute of Atlantis. "If Atlas is around I'm sure he'll do whatever he can to help."

"Thanks Alvin."

"Ok everyone, Simon, Theodore and I will split into three groups to move into three different sections. I want everyone in the Gathering to go to the guardian they trust the most with their lives."

The Gathering split into two groups with half of them moving beside Simon and the other half moving beside Theodore. Alvin glared at them. "Oh that's real funny. I'm supposed to be the actual leader you know."

"What do you expect?" Brittany mocked.

"Come on. I'm the tough, cool, good-looking…ok wait, so I'm gonna go alone?" he started with the others about to leave. Just then, Sapphire went up to him and held his hand.

(Sapphire, are you sure? I should tell you that my brother is totally unreliable.)

(He saved my life, Simon. I know I can trust him) she replied and then continued to hold Alvin's hand. Alvin sighed in relief. A few other people in the Gathering, including Brittany, joined his group when they saw Sapphire with him.

"That's more like it," Alvin said in confidence. "Finally warming up, eh."

"Tone it down, Mr. Incredible, we're only going with you because Sapphire is immortal and she could protect us," Brittany replied. Alvin felt his pride break. 'Weaker than a little girl' the thought kept ringing in his mind. As Theodore, Eleanor and the others started snickering.

"Anyway, we've wasted enough time. And I'm sure Malix can't hold on much longer. We better hurry, every second matters," Simon stated. And in a moment, all of the Gathering ignored their petty squabbles and focused on the major task at hand. And after a few quick goodbyes, the Gathering set off on their different ways hoping that when they would meet again, immortal blood would run through their veins.

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A/N: Please tell me what ya think of it. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I don't want to lie and say the next chappie ill be up in a few days, but I'll try my best. I'm just hoping to translate my ideas into words properly, endings are pretty hard for me so I might need time. But I'll try to get it up as soon as I can. So, once again sorry for the slow update, please forgive me. I love you all!!

Till next time…


	18. Dancing in the Forest

Hey, I'm back from the dead…. Heh, sorry for the long-long wait. I hope I haven't lost all of my readers. I won't try to make excuses but I hope you like this chapter

_Dancing in the Forest_

Jake from the Gathering had been carrying Theodore for a while as Theodore was regaining his strength. A lot of his energy had been drained from the previous battle and for Jake, it felt like he was actually of some use, because he felt completely useless and helpless on the battlefield. He wanted to do something...anything that could help the Guardians of the Gathering. So while Theodore rested on his back, Theodore's star guide led the way.

The Gathering, which was now a third smaller than usual, were huddled close together as they walked though the dark forest. There was barely any light except for a few fireflies circling around the base of a few trees, and the light of Theodore's star guide shining a light in the same direction.

"Thanks Jake," Theodore said climbing down from his back. He had gotten enough rest and now was leading the way.

Eleanor was attending a young girl who was exhausted from walking. But she took a glance over to Theodore. It was still a shock at how much he had changed. If Theodore was shaking or trembling, he must have been doing it on the inside because on the outside, he appeared calm.

*Flashback*

A few days before the ritual, Eleanor had approached Dave in the dark of night when most of the other villagers were sound asleep. Theodore and his brothers were sound asleep as well. But Eleanor knew Dave would be up.

It had been well known to the village that their leader was usually the very last person to fall asleep every night. And the days leading up to the ritual, he kept going to bed later and later.

On that night, Dave was sitting beside a campfire he had set up just outside his house. He had been staring into the fire for about a couple hours in an almost hypnotic state. Therefore, when Eleanor approached him, he was somewhat startled, but when he saw the young chipette, he smiled gracefully.

"Hi Eleanor, can't fall asleep?" he asked calmly.

Eleanor nodded slightly and then sat beside him. "I'm worried about Theodore. I'm worried about everyone, but I'm mostly worried about Theodore."

"I know the feeling."

"But…I mean... you know how Theodore is. He is scared of a lot of things. He's afraid of spiders, he's afraid of the dark…he's afraid of birds, he's afraid of monsters, he's afraid of frogs...he's even afraid of two of my toy dolls."

Dave was trying to hide a smile, but it seemed to creep out anyway much to Eleanor's disapproval. "It's not funny Dave. I'm being serious."

"I understand why you're worried. I mean, we can spend all night and probably all of tomorrow talking about the different things Theodore is afraid of, but in the end, it wouldn't matter."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that I am not incredibly worried about Theodore. But I will tell you that my worry for Theodore does not outweigh my worry for my other two boys."

"But Alvin or Simon are not as scared about half the stuff that Theodore is scared of," Eleanor answered back.

"I know, but the journey you are about to go on is far more different than anything you have ever experienced before. I learned a lot about myself from the Quest for the Destiny Star. I learned things about myself that I never even knew I had in me. But I did have them.

There's one thing about Theodore that you probably already know about him that makes him so special. He cares a lot. I mean he really cares a lot about people."

Eleanor smiled when Dave said this. She knew the type of person Theodore was and nothing Dave said surprised her.

"Theodore cares so much about people, more than he probably realizes himself. So I know that when the time comes to face his fear as a choice to protecting someone he cares about, Theodore will do the impossible to protect people. He would risk his own life for others without a second guess."

Eleanor was still feeling nervous, but Dave put his hand over hers and looked her in her eyes which filled her with confidence. "Trust me Eleanor, if I had not gone on this journey before, I would probably be the same way you are right now. But I am definitely sure, that Theodore will make both of us proud. I promise you."

*End Flashback*

Eleanor looked at Theodore who was now leading The Gathering through the woods and she smiled. Dave was right, she was so proud of him.

"Everything is so confusing," another boy from the Gathering said out of the blue. "We don't even know where we are going."

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the leaves above the tall trees and it seemed as if there was a shift in the wind. If the Gathering wasn't huddle in close enough, they got closer. Only Theodore stood out as he took out his weapon and aimed his arrow high into the trees above them.

Then, a voice called out to him from the star guide. The voice was a soothing voice of a young woman that was so soft and so sweet that the voice could have been the wind itself. If the voice hadn't called Theodore by his name, he might have mistaken it for the wind.

The voice continued to call out his name and one by one, the Gathering started to hear it too.

"Who are you?" Theodore answered back.

"You are almost there. Follow the path of the Star guide and you will have your answer," the voice said and suddenly, the star guide shone brighter filling up the small area of the forest with a bright cleansing light.

"Everyone, follow me," Theodore ordered as he headed off in the direction of the light with the Gathering following closely. Theodore would have been uncertain if it hadn't been for the star guide reacting to the voice. He would always trust the star guide because it was given to him by his father. In this ever-changing, inconsistent world, the star guide was his constant.

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The Gathering kept running until they reached a part of the forest that was far more different than any other part. For one thing, everywhere around them was covered in mist.

"Everyone stay close together...and make sure you're holding someone's hand Theodore said with a bit of nervousness as he held onto Eleanor's hand and another young girl from the Gathering with his other hand. He continued to follow the star guide with its guiding light still shining through the fog.

"Is everyone together," one of the guys from the Gathering called out and heard an overwhelming yes from everyone in the Gathering.

Theodore continued to head forward in the direction of the Star guide. As they walked, they could hear the sounds of water from nearby, but they could not see it.

Just then, in front of Theodore was an incredibly bright light that seemed to shine out through the fog and eventually break through it. The light was almost blinding, but was not at all harmful to the eyes. The light seemed to match the intensity of the light from the Star guide and they seemed to have the same aura.

When they approached the glowing light, in its centre, the light was in a shape of a beautiful white dove. The image of the dove gave the Gathering a sensation of absolute bliss and serenity. The bird was flying in the same spot as the Gathering moved closer and closer.

Not one word was said for quite a while. They all just formed a circle around the dove, which had not moved away from that exact spot and continued to flap its wings in the air consistently without one indication that it was getting tired.

"Hello Theodore and Gathering of Mismar," the dove broke the silence in the same beautiful, heavenly, woman voice Theodore had heard from his Star guide earlier.

Theodore couldn't even speak even though he had so many questions he wanted to ask.

All the questions in Theodore's mind were now being asked by the different children of the Gathering.

"Who are you?" one girl asked.

"How do you know Theo's name," Jake asked.

"What is the Gathering of Mismar? Is that us?" another girl asked.

"Why did the Star guide lead us to you?" Eleanor asked.

"How can you talk? Are you really a bird?"

"Do you have something to do with the Destiny Star?" and the questions just kept on coming in a huge wave.

"Please, calm down and let me explained," the dove replied with a little giggle. "All of you are so cute, that it is hard to believe the amazing things that you have accomplished. And yet, I must still remember those things so that I can talk to you seriously about the events that have passed and the events that will come."

"Who are you?" Theodore asked finally gaining the ability to speak after what he had just witnessed.

"I am what came out of the shattered star. My name is Alexus, a powerful star that has watched over the world for many centuries and thus has seen the world grow and evolve into the beautiful place we see today."

"I don't believe what we saw today could be described as anything near beautiful, not with so many deaths on the battlefield," someone from the Gathering spoke out.

"It's true. There are moments of imperfection. After all, this world is still growing. But speaking from someone who has seen the past and who is now witnessing the future (and when I mean future, I mean you), I can honestly say that this world is growing and getting better."

"So...if you are what came out of the Destiny Star, does that mean you are part of the Destiny Star? Does that mean if we touch you, we can become immortal?"

"I wish it were that easy young one. But the truth is, what you call the Destiny Star does not exist anymore," the dove said calmly.

The Gathering started to panic and get scared. "So...it's true, we broke the Destiny Star," one of the younger girls from the Gathering spoke as she started to whimper.

"What do you mean?" the Dove asked.

"How did we destroy the Destiny Star? Was it because we were the Millennium Gathering, or was it because people from outside our Gathering touched the Destiny Star. How did we screw it up?" Jake asked in an angrier mood rather than a sad mood.

"My dear, there was nothing you could do to prevent the outcome. Your Destiny Star was meant for everyone. It wasn't meant just for you to become immortal. It was meant to shine its light on the world, as is the same for all stars."

"But we know how corrupt humans are. Most of us have seen the casualties of war and the greed of humans. We've seen how their desire to gain something far outweighs the life of another. How can something so tainted with evil, touch the purity of the Destiny Star?" one of the older boys questioned.

"To say that humans are corrupt would be inaccurate because corruption is natural. With everything, whenever they find something they desire, they will do anything to get it. To say that we are all different then humans is wrong.

"But although there has been great pain labeled over the human population, there is great love as well. There is the love of a young man sitting and reading a book with his dying mother on her deathbed. There is the love of a human doing everything possible to save a perfect stranger stuck in a fire or caught in an accident. There is the love of two beautiful souls intertwined in the magic of romance with a gentle kiss.

"I have seen the evolution of the human population and it is the single most wondrous thing you could ever see. So indeed there is great evil, but there is great good in the human population, and thus, is not the reason the Destiny Star shattered."

"But then...why was the Destiny Star destroyed?"

"Corruption is natural, however, the only ones who are honestly uncorrupted, would be the stars, which is only because we exist far away from anything that can corrupt us. Thus we are pure.

"However, one star was able to cross the boundaries of distance and touch down on this world once a generation, and doing so, send out its purity to all who requested it."

"Alexus...do you mean, that when our ancestors touched the Destiny Star and became immortal, that they were actually taking the purity from the Destiny Star?" Theodore asked.

"Actually, it was more like the star was giving it's purity to them. The result of that transfer of purity was the power of immortality. And once all of the purity is removed from a star, it becomes corrupted. And when something becomes completely corrupted, it destroys itself."

"So...in the end, not even the Destiny Star can live forever."

"My child, being immortal does not necessarily mean one will live forever. Eventually, everything leaves one way or another, and this time, it was the Destiny Star's turn to go," Alexus said over the sound of running water which could still be heard, but not seen due to the fog and Alexus' bright light. The Gathering hung their heads in depression.

"So we failed..." Theodore said softly.

"...yet, as certain as we are that all things must leave, I am equally as certain that new things must appear," Alexus said brightly as the Gathering started to cheer up. Within disappearance comes appearance. Within death comes birth. Within destruction comes creation. One cannot live without the other and so they are tied together in an endless string. A string that can never break. With no beginning or ending. Forever a circle. Forever a continuous loop."

"Do you mean that there will be a new Destiny Star?" Eleanor asked.

"It depends on the events that will take place in the near future. Theodore, it is up to you and your brothers to determine the fate of the Stars and of the Gathering of Mismar."

"No matter what is in the future, I'll be ready," Theo said as he received a few pats on the back from his friends.

"You called us the Gathering of Mismar. But we have never ever heard that name before," Eleanor asked.

"True, the name of Mismar is what we stars call your village. There are many different names for your village among many different stars. Some call you Arcady or Midnight or Polaris. But no matter what happens in the world around you, your village has remained a fixed place in the world and the stars use your village as a guide to navigate and shine around the world.

"And the Destiny Star used your village as a general mark to set up the appropriate distance as to where to land. That is why the Star Guide in your hand is such a useful tool. It not only helps you to locate the Destiny Star, but it allows the Destiny Star to locate your position."

"It's funny...you keep talking like there is hope. But for right now, the fact is, the Destiny Star is destroyed, our enemy is immortal and we are separated from our friends in a huge forest where monsters live, so forgive me if I'm not as cheerful as you," Jake said in frustration.

"I wish I could tell you that everything will be fine...but I can't, because I am not sure. However, if there is a chance of good prevailing over evil, it will be up to your brother," the dove replied.

"What do you mean by 'it will be up to my brother?' Which brother? What will he have to do?"

"I am sorry Theodore, but I cannot reveal to you anything about it. The test is occurring as we speak, so there is nothing you can do from here, to change the outcome."

"Please, tell me...at least tell me which one of my brothers is being tested. Is it something where he could die?" Theodore asked with the Gathering getting concerned to and now starting to ask some follow up questions.

"I'm really sorry, but I cannot answer anymore questions. The only thing you can do is trust in the Guardians of the Gathering...as they have trusted you."

Theodore gave up. He was honestly getting nowhere with this spirit. But he did trust his brothers. He trusted them more than anyone because they had always been there to protect him, so he was positive they could protect themselves. "Oh Alvin...Simon...please be ok."

Just then Theodore thought he saw the dove wink at him before it raised its head and looked into the sky. "Gathering of Mismar, you need to try having more faith. After all, the stars in the sky who have watched over this world for many centuries are not afraid. In fact, they are rejoicing in the departure of the Destiny Star."

"Rejoicing? Why would they cheer something so horrible?" Eleanor asked.

"Things look different when viewing the world from a different perspective," the dove said calmly. "By the way, you should brace yourselves."

While the Gathering was trying to figure out what Alexus meant, the sky was suddenly filled with shooting stars. It was an amazing sight to witness as the night sky was covered with shooting stars all heading to one direction. They were all heading in the Gathering's direction.

"Are they going to crash into us," one of the girls in the Gathering screamed out in fear.

Theodore was about to do something, but Alexus calmed them down. "Do not be alarmed. No harm will come to you, I promise. These are my friends. They have been watching you for some time now and they really wanted to meet you."

The glowing gas balls had not crashed on the ground, but landed just above the ground and started floating above the ground.

Their light was a little less brighter than Alexus' but the intensity was still the same. And there was still the same blinding light that did not damage your eyes.

They did not talk, but they floated around the Gathering, passing and weaving through the children as if it were a game of tag. As they passed through, they lit up the foggy atmosphere of what was thought to be a forest, but it turned out to be a valley with a small waterfall near the edge where the running water originated from. It truly was a beautiful site. These stars, if that was what they still were, looked like giant fireflies and moved around in a similar matter.

You could not tell what was in the centre of them, but their gracious light instantly told you, you had nothing to fear. They honestly look like weightless, floating balls of gas dancing around the Gathering.

Yes, that's what they were doing. They were dancing. A lot of the younger children in the Gathering thought they were cute and wanted to touch them much to the dismay of the older kids.

Theodore looked at Alexus with a confused expression. "Are these the same stars that float in the sky," he asked.

"They are."

"But I don't get it. I thought you said the Destiny Star was the only star that could touch the ground of our world, but now I see...at least, I think I see a pretty valley surrounded by dancing stars."

"There are a lot of things in our lives that can't be explained. I cannot fully explain this myself, but all I did was ask them to join us and they did. I am not quite sure how, but they did."

The stars moved through the children of the Gathering like playful spirits and started dancing around them. It was hard to see how glowing balls of gas could dance, but there was something about their repetitive movements that gave out the sensation of dancing.

"What should we do?" Eleanor asked.

"Dance," Alexus replied simply.

Jake let out a cheap chuckle. "Buddy, now's not the time to dance."

Alexus laugh a little. "The stars wanted me to send you a message."

"What is it?" Theodore asked.

"They wanted me to tell you not to fear your future. They will always be there watching over you and even though if sometimes you feel like nothing is going out the way you planned, it takes just one moment to change your life for the better or the worse. So live each moment so that in the end, we can all recognize your life being more precious than you could ever have imagined. Do not fear the future, because they would always be there dancing with you through the tough times and through the good times.

"Dancing is the way to connect the souls of two things through a common rhythm creating a bond that can last for as long as the rhythm is kept alive. These dances can last forever such that when the body is gone and the life has slipped away, the souls of the dancers would stay together forever. They want you to dance with them. They want you to live for the moment and never forget how precious life is…. They want you to live forever," Alexus replied.

Suddenly, from the small waterfall, Atlas rose up with a mighty roar. All of the gathering cheered in amazement. "Atlas!" they called out and rushed to the mighty sea serpent.

"I'm so happy to see all of you are safe," he said as he received warm embraces from members of the Gathering. "But how did I get here?" he asked.

"It is the spirit of the Gathering that summoned you," Alexus said as he hovered beside the giant serpent.

Usually a serpent next to a bird would have disastrous results, but definitely not this time. Atlas could tell there was something extraordinary about this bird.

"The power of the stars dance lifted the spirits of the Gathering and once they believe in love and happiness again, they believed in the power of magic and thus you were reborn, stronger than ever."

"Thank you. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart," he replied with a slight tear trickling down his cheek.

"Don't be afraid, Atlas. As sure as I can see the stars dancing around us, is the same certainty that I feel we can defeat Soulspaun. Stars are incredible, and if they have faith in us, we should have faith too," Theodore said with a bright smile. Eleanor had not seen this type of smile on Theodore in so long. A smile that expressed that everything would be fine.

After a bit of hesitation, the Gathering started dancing with the stars. It was awkward at first and a lot of the older kids were feeling foolish, but once Theodore and Eleanor started dancing and having fun with the stars, and the older kids saw the younger kids having so much fun that eventually they started dancing too.

There was an ethereal sensation in the air as the whole valley started dancing without any music and as they dance, the Gathering felt a connection growing with the stars, as both hope and spirits were lifted high into the air.

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A/N: Soooo….what did ya think? I made this chapter longer than usual. I know it doesn't make up for the long wait, but I hope it helps. I could have named this chapter Dancing with the Stars, but I thought that would be too corny. Anyway, please tell me what you think

Till next time...


	19. The Gateways to Oturhaea

_The Gateways to __Oturhaea_

Simon had spent the last half hour buried in his book trying his best to understand anything and everything that was on every page. He had only taken a few glances in front and behind him to watch where he was going and to keep an eye on the other third of the Gathering. There hadn't been much talking except for a few whispers. But Simon was comfortable with the silence because he could better concentrate on reading.

He was almost positive he had read the whole book, but there always happened to be some pages that he never even knew were in the book. He had not quite ruled out the notion that this was a magic book with new pages appearing out of nowhere every minute, but it looked so ordinary.

Simon once again took a glimpse at his Gathering. Out of him and his brothers, he had the most children with him. He guessed that he was the most reliable out of his brothers. This was what made him want to find out what was going on even more.

He hated this feeling of not knowing what was going on. He hated being in the dark about everything. He was uninformed and was going into battle unprepared and there was nothing he could do about it. He had never read anything in the books about the Destiny Star exploding.

He knew about regular stars and supernovas and such, but he never knew that something like the Destiny Star, which could grant immortality, could be…well, mortal. He couldn't believe he had made such an unbelievable overestimation, and now everyone was paying for it.

"Simon…" one of the younger girls from his Gathering approached him.

"What's wrong Jenny?" he asked. She showed him the top of her thumb which had a small cut. Simon analyzed it and then took out a few herbs from his bag. "You should have told me earlier Jenny. Let's hope you don't get infected."

"I'm sorry, it wasn't hurting as much as it is now," she said as she sat down and allowed her wound to be treated by Simon.

"Kevin, can you go over to that _Hydrastis__canadensis_and pick a few of its leaves?" Simon asked, but let out a little chuckle when the boy from the Gathering looked at him as if he had no idea what he had been saying. "I'm sorry; I mean the Goldenseal plant right over there, beside those yellow flowers."

"Oh, you should have said that before," Kevin said as he rushed to the plants.

"I guess I should have," Simon said with a smile. He had never felt stronger when he knew everything about a situation. Such as this simple cut with Jenny. He knew everything he had to do to make her feel better and he wasn't at all worried. He just wished he could get the same knowledge about the Destiny Star.

"Do you wish to understand?" a voice was said in Simon's head which caught him off guard. The voice was soft and gentle like the sweet lullaby of a mother to her child. But when he looked around, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"What's wrong Simon?" Jeanette asked when she saw the confused chipmunk, but he quickly dismissed it.

"Nothing," he said as he took the Goldenseal leaves from Kevin and started making the herb for Jenny.

When he had safely patched her up, they started moving again, but as they walked, Simon's star guide was getting brighter and brighter. He had noticed this and paid close attention to it as the part of the forest they were in was gradually getting brighter until the moment where the scenery no longer looked like it was nighttime.

"Do not be afraid Simon, I promise no harm will come to your Gathering…only answers," the sweet voice sounded again. Simon knew that sometimes beautiful voices were not always as inviting as they appeared. So he took out his weapon, which kinda worried the Gathering who had not heard the strange voice.

And even though Simon's star guide was glowing really bright, that didn't lower Simon's defenses. He didn't trust anything he didn't fully understand and thus, it kept him aware.

"Everyone, get behind me," Simon said calmly.

"What's wrong Simon?" Jeanette asked. Just then, pedals of flowers started floating down from the sky. But these flowers were all too familiar to the Gathering because they had seen this before.

"Tesecera Flowers," Jeanette said in fear.

"It can't be. I thought those kinds of flowers were only found in the forest of the fairies and pixies. Right Simon?" one of the girls asked.

Simon couldn't even respond. He didn't know anything anymore. Everything he read and learned had been counteracted and reversed these past few days. But he didn't have time to react or complain because one thing he did know firsthand was the effects of the Tesecera Flowers, and without a moment to waste, one word came to mind.

"RUN!" he called out as the Gathering raced through the forest trying to escape the pedals of the Tesecera flowers that were now raining down everywhere in the forest. They knew that if they were caught, they may fall asleep into a completely vulnerable state and who knew what would come next.

It didn't take long before the Gathering started getting tired of running. The flowers were dropping down like rain and the smell of its pollen was practically everywhere.

Simon was wishing Theodore was here. With his wind power, he would be able to blow all the pollen away. But since he wasn't, the pollen odor became strong and it was affecting the younger kids who started to get really tired.

When Simon saw this, he immediately stopped and created a water barrier around the Gathering.

"Stay together, I'll protect you," Simon said to them as he kept his barrier up preventing the pedals of the Tesecera flower and the pollen of the flowers from entering.

"Simon, you don't have to be afraid," the voice once again called out to him and only him. "I am here as a friend."

"What are you? A fairy! A pixie! What!" Simon screamed out in anger. The Gathering could not hear the voice and so, was confused by Simon's action.

"Simon, are you ok?" Jeanette asked.

"There's a voice talking to me. I'm guessing if you can't hear it then they are speaking to me telepathically. I just never knew fairies or pixies had that kind of power…but I guess, I've been saying that a lot lately."

"So, there must be fairies around here," Kevin said as he looked around, but from within Simon's water barrier, all he could see were flower pedals.

"Simon, if they are talking to you, maybe they want something. Try listening to them. I mean…it's not like we can do anything else."

Jeanette was right. They were trapped and Simon couldn't hold this barrier up for much longer. So he closed his eyes hoping he could speak to the voice again.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"My name is Alexus."

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"Are you a fairy? Or a pixie?"

"I'm neither. I am a spirit, broken free from the Destiny Star…and I am a friend."

"A friend wouldn't be trying to cast us into a deep sleep."

"It is only in sleep that I can make my form visible to you. Please do not be afraid, I only used the Tesecera flowers so that I can have infinite time to communicate with you without trying to constantly battle your temptation to wake up. Once I have shown you all you need to know, I will awaken you from your sleep."

"How do I know I can trust you? It's not like you have made the greatest first impression."

"Please Simon; do you see how your star guide is reacting? The star guide given to you by your father; the star guide which binds you to your brother…it believes in me. Will you?"

Simon looked down at his star guide which was indeed reacting to the voice in his mind. And when he remembered how the star guide helped him connect with Alvin when he was in another dimension, he knew right away he could trust his voice.

He looked over to the Gathering and then smiled reassuringly. "Please trust me," he said. And while a few of them were confused, most of them gave him a confident look showing that whatever decision he chose, they would be with him.

Then, Simon lowered the barrier and in less than a minute, the Gathering was completely covered in Tesecera flower pedals and in even less time, they were all fast asleep.

1010101

Simon opened his eyes slowly, but once they were fully opened, he quickly scanned the area to see where his Gathering was. He was relieved to see that they were right beside him slowly opening their eyes as well.

Simon could tell right away that he was in a dream state. Everything around him seemed moderately blurry and very lucid. He could move and yet it felt as if everything around him was moving in slow motion like a hallucination.

"Is everyone ok?" he asked as everyone started getting use to the setting.

"Where are we?" Kevin asked.

"I think we are in a dream."

"I mean…where are we?" he repeated as he started taking note of the actual scenery in the dream.

The plants, the scenery and the atmosphere were unlike anything they had seen and for Simon, this was especially shocking because he had no clue any place like this ever existed.

The leaves on the trees and the plants were all strange colours of blue, purple, black and silver and they were all so much larger than the tree trunks or the stems. And it looked as if all the plants were moving without the assistance of the wind.

They knew that plants were living organisms, but this brought a whole new meaning to that term.

And yet, even more amazing was that the plants were just one of the things that captivated the Gathering's attention.

To the north of their location, they saw a large body of water. But what was strange about this body of water was that the water was like a reverse waterfall, with the water being sent straight into the sky as if gravity had been flipped around.

It would be so hard to imagine if they hadn't seen it with their own eyes but these waterfalls, in the place they were in, were actually falling upwards.

"Where are we?" Kevin repeated one more time as he was trying to wrap his mind around the complexity of the situation.

None were more confused than Simon. Simon, who understood the rules of gravity and who knew most of the types of plant species, could not begin to understand what was going on.

Not only was the scenery breathtaking, but there were strange and unnatural creatures that were wild even for them to imagine; especially for inhabitants in a world full of dragons, sea serpents and giants. The creatures were difficult to describe. Some of them looked like dinosaurs except they had subtle characteristics similar to insects, such as antennas and wings and the ever-annoying buzzing sound. Yet they were just one of many extraordinary creatures, some of which looked extremely vicious.

The Gathering wondered why these creatures weren't attacking or even reacting to them, but it was as if the creatures did not see them.

But amidst all the incredible scenery and surroundings, Jeanette spotted something that definitely did not belong. Among all the amazing creatures, there sat an owl on the leaf of a tree staring back at her. It was the only thing that actually recognized her presence.

"Simon," she called out and pointed to the owl.

The Gathering quickly turned to face the small normal creature. "Fascinating, a Great Horned Owl; I never thought something like that would be in a place like this," Simon said as he adjusted his glasses.

Suddenly, the owl spread its wings and flew in their direction. Simon took out his axe to prepare for a battle while the Gathering stood behind him, but as soon as the owl was in close distance, it spoke.

"Hello again, Simon," the owl spoke as it landed on a small flower in front of them.

Simon recognized the voice and slowly lowered his weapon. "Alexus?"

"Yes, now that you are all asleep, I can speak to all of you in my visible form."

"Where have you taken us? I can't think of anyone who could have this type of imagination," Jeanette said still in wonder about the world the Gathering had entered.

"That's funny, I'm sure you know of someone who could think about a place like this. After all, this is Sapphire's home."

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"I'm sorry…can you repeat that?" one of the boys from the Gathering asked.

"My dear Gathering, welcome to Oturhaea, home of your friend Sapphire."

"There are so many things wrong with what you just said," Simon responded in annoyance. "First of all, how do you know about Sapphire and about her home? I found her in a normal forest far away from anything like this."

"Look behind you," the owl replied simply. The Gathering turned around and noticed they were on the outskirts of a beautiful village. "Follow me and you will get the answers you seek," Alexus said and flew in the direction of the village.

Simon sighed. "It doesn't look like we'll be waking up anytime soon."

They entered into the strange village that apparently was Sapphire's home village. The houses were all in strange shapes that looked a lot like old ship models with bright colours of orange and red.

As the Gathering passed they noticed that all of the inhabitants looked human just like Sapphire and they also noticed that none of them were paying attention to the Gathering. It was as if they were ghosts passing through the streets. Maybe they were, after all, this was a dream.

"Yes," Alexus responded to the question all of the Gathering was thinking. "This is a dream state of the past. And as all of you most likely know, Oturhaea is not of your world."

"Then where is it?" Simon asked almost instantly after Alexus' remark.

"Oturhaea is everywhere and nowhere," Alexus responded. All of the Gathering sighed in annoyance.

"Are we really going to have to go through this with you?" Simon responded to the vague answer.

Alexus giggled a little. "Oturhaea is the centre of everything, the central nervous system of all dimensions that branches out like a network. In Oturhaea, portals are made to pass through from dimension to dimension and this special power belongs only to Oturhaea and the inhabitants who live there. Only Oturhaea have the gateways to jump from one place to the next and in doing so, inhabitants of Oturhaea have migrated all over."

"So, that explains why Sapphire had a portal, but why did…"

"Please Simon; hold your questions for now. I have taken you to Oturhaea as it was in the past, the answers to many of your questions will be revealed in the following events that will come. So please watch, and then you will understand."

The horned owl showed the Gathering a young pregnant woman of Oturhaea outside her strange house sweeping the floors casually. Suddenly, someone was walking through the village, and this person had caught the attention of the villagers.

It was a chipmunk who the Gathering recognized almost immediately. "Malix Tidalar!" they shouted. And in his arms was an injured young man just an inch away from death.

Malix was heading straight towards the young pregnant woman and as soon as she saw who was in his arms, fear and panic struck her heart and she raced towards him.

"Darren! Daren!" she called out his name as she reached him. He could barely keep his eyes open. But when he saw her, he smiled.

Malix placed him on the ground while the lovely young woman stared into his eyes. "Please don't leave me Darren. Please don't leave us," she said with tears in her eyes. She could barely keep it together.

"Please don't cry Chelsea, I want to see you smile," he said slowly.

"Darren…I love you," she said as she kissed his hand.

"And I will always love you. Take care of our child. I will always watch over her and you."

"Forever?" she asked.

He did not answer, he just closed his eyes for the last time and Chelsea collapsed in tears over him.

Chelsea's mother came from the house and saw the sad scene unfold. She went up to Malix and put a hand on his shoulder. "Young man, I can't begin to thank you for your efforts to bring Darren back to his family. We are in your debt."

"Please, no thanks are necessary. It was the least I could do. I only wish I could do more," he said as he looked down at the young mother-to-be.

"I would like to offer you a meal, but right now, I have to be with my daughter."

"Of course. Oh and before I forget, Darren wanted me to give this to his wife as a way to remember him. Please give it to her," he said handing Chelsea's mother a shimmering sapphire pendant.

"It certainly is beautiful. I will give it to her when she is calm. Thank you."

1010101

Malix fell to his knees with his heart pounding. He had no idea Soulspaun had so much power. Black fire seemed to circle and pulsate around his body as the whole battlefield seemed to crumble under the force of this battle.

Was this what death felt like? He felt weak and he was shaking. The thought of immortality had left his mind for a brief moment as he faced an opponent equal in immortality, but much greater in power.

Soulspaun laughed maniacally as small embers of black fire shot out of his hands like bullets from a gun hitting Malix right in his chest knocking him backward.

He may have been immortal, but pain still hurt.

Soulspaun came charging in with his sword, but Malix forced himself to his feet and did a back flip to avoid the attack. Then Malix took his lance and thrusted forward towards Soulspaun but it was countered by Soulspaun's sword.

He swung his sword and slashed Malix across his cheek, and then he slammed him to the ground. Soulspaun tried to take a swipe at his head trying to decapitate him, but when he tried, an invisible force counteracted his sword and sent him falling backwards.

He got up to his feet and gave a little smile. "One of the perks of immortality I suppose," he said calmly.

"It is pointless to fight in a battle no one can win. Why must we continue?" Malix called out.

"Who says no one can win?"

Suddenly, clouds were formed in the night sky and thunder and lightning appeared almost instantaneously. And then, shortly after, it started to rain. The storm came so quickly that it felt like it had been planned. Maybe it was. Malix didn't look scared, but Soulspaun had an evil grin on his face.

"The skies are warning you, about your fate," he said in a low dark voice as he started to float. Malix looked at him with confusion as the dark creature was suddenly immersed in black fire.

Malix backed up a little when he saw the new figure that came out of the fire. This creature did not look like Soulspaun. It was far more…intense. Every part of his body had been amplified including his muscles, his burning red glowing eyes; even the little hairs on his skin were standing on end and moving as if they had been electrically charged. It walked on four legs with a face similar to a wild raging wolf. His skin was pitch black and his claws were large and sharp which were the same traits as his teeth.

Giant black demonic wings appeared from his back as all of his armor had been removed. He did not look like a human anymore…more like a demon…like a giant gargoyle.

When Malix saw this creature, he did not change his expression, he was not frightened because he had seen this creature once before and only once before. He remained calm in an almost accepting melancholy state. "So, it's you again. After all this time. And now, Rebecca isn't here to help me," he said.

The creature Soulspaun, now more demon then man, looked at Malix with its haunting eyes. His eyes were entrancing and yet so treacherous that to stare into them could even be more dangerous than the eyes of Medusa.

"My immortal friend, these will be your last moments in life. Use them well," it said in a dark demonic voice.

1010101

"What's going on now?" Jeanette asked as everything around them became a blur of images.

"Time is speeding up. As you know, this is not Oturhaea but an image of what Oturhaea used to be. I am speeding time to allow you to receive the important information…information that will be vital to you later on," Alexus said as time continued to pass.

The images blurred past rapidly until it stopped at a moment and the Gathering found themselves in a small room in an unknown house.

At first they thought they were alone, but then they saw two people…two lovers caught in a passionate embrace. And beside them, lying in a crib was a beautiful baby girl fast asleep.

"Why did you take us here?" Simon said at first, but as he adjusted his glasses and focused on the male, he recognized that the male was Malix and the female was the same young woman who had cried so tearfully at the death of her husband. "What's going on here?"

"It is exactly how you see it," Alexus responded. "Malix had remained in Oturhaea to look after Chelsea until her baby was born, but over time, well…it is exactly how you see it."

"Wait a minute, how long has it been since her husband has died?"

"I don't think that matters, Jeanette" Kevin replied.

"What's important is to know that they were in love. And what's even more important is to recognize the child in the crib."

"That's Sapphire isn't it," Simon remarked knowing the truth. Alexus nodded. "I feel like Sapphire should be watching this, I don't see why this is so important for us."

"You will soon, just watch," Alexus said as they all watched closely.

Malix and Chelsea held each other close; she smiled as she wrapped her arms around him. In his arms, Chelsea felt safe. It had been so strange for her. She had been confused for the longest time when he came and she had been afraid that the love she felt for her dead husband had not been for real…as if it had all been a lie. But the more she pushed Malix away, the more strongly she felt about him. And when she finally gave birth to her precious daughter Sapphire, she knew it was ok to love Malix.

The memory of her husband would always be around her neck with the sapphire pendant she always wore and also, his memory would be in their daughter Sapphire, whose name would carry his memory in itself.

"You feel so warm," she said softly knowing that it was ok to love him, especially when her heart was begging her to do so.

Yet Chelsea's thoughts were not the only thoughts filled with doubt. Malix Tidalar was having an inner dilemma on whether or not to tell Chelsea the truth about her husband's death. He knew that when she found out about the situation, she would never want to see him again and his heart would break.

He wanted to be selfish. Just once he wanted to be selfish and hold onto her forever. He had been wandering for so long, searching for answers and secrets beyond what he was meant to know, yet having her in his life would be greater than any of the adventures he had gone on and would be worth all the pain and suffering he had endured.

"Chelsea…I need to tell you something…" he started. But before he could continue, he was interrupted by Chelsea's mother.

"Malix, please come. There is something important I must show you," she said disrupting the peaceful scene. Malix turned to Chelsea who gave a supportive smile. "It's ok, I've got to prepare Sapphire's bottle anyway. Take your time."

The Gathering followed Malix and Sapphire's grandmother to the dusty cellar of the house, which looked like a typical basement. It was messy with many boxes full of clothes and old books, but on the shelf to the right, there were a bunch of small boxes which Simon could recognize immediately, especially the small blue box on the left that he had seen Sapphire carry around with her for so long.

Sapphire's grandmother grabbed a different box. It was a small box about the size of an engagement ring box that had been right beside the blue box. Then she motioned Malix to come over.

"What's in the box, Abigail?" he asked.

"I know you're not from around here, and I know you have a pretty good idea what's in the box," she said with a smirk.

"Is it a portal?"

"So you know the secret behind Oturhaea," she said opening the box slowly, but not all the way. Just enough so Malix could peak through. Inside, he saw many tiny spheres inside.

"I do, but that was not the reason I came. Actually it was because…."

"Please…you're story is not for me to hear. Each of these small spheres is a gateway to a different world…some that you have most likely been before. And the red sphere brings you back here."

"Abigail…"

"Eventually you will have to leave Oturhaea, one way or another. I know you will. But I wanted to give you this opportunity that no matter where you are, you could always come back here," she said as she closed the box and handed it to him.

"…thank you. I really appreciate this."

"Malix, portals are powerful gateways that can connect life no matter how far apart the distance. Worlds that may seem infinitely far away could be crossed in just seconds. Portals are made by the desires of the heart to be in a certain place or a certain time for an important reason. No matter what the reason is whether the intentions are good or bad, if the will is strong enough and the magic is advanced enough, a portal can be created and can take you to a place that you may never have even seen before. But if the desire to get there is pure without doubt, the portal will take you there. That is the secret of Oturhaea and that is why we are where we are in this Universe and why we are the only place to create portals. It is so we can all be connected. A power like this is stronger than any magic or any force in this Universe. A power fueled by the desires in one heart whether by love or anger or determination…or hope…makes one invincible."

Once again the images became a blur as time once again sped up, but not as far. The Gathering did not speak; they were all processing what had been said and they were all thinking about the deeper meaning; especially Simon, whose mind had been a complete mess with so many thoughts.

Was this the power that allowed Alvin to come back to them that day when Atlar Castle was destroyed?

"There is just one more scene I need to show you," Alexus said as the scenery changed to the setting just inside Chelsea's house on a rainy day.

Malix had just walked into the house as Chelsea was standing there with baby Sapphire in her hands. Her light blue eyes were sparkling and she looked so beautiful standing there. Malix's heart started beating faster.

"Malix Tidalar, would you marry me?" she asked with the whole Gathering watching eagerly waiting for Malix's answer.

There was a long moment of silence as Malix looked down with regret. "Chelsea…I need to tell you something."

The young mother felt a bit uneasy as she questioned this strange reaction from the man she thought loved her. She put Sapphire down in her baby chair and then invited Malix to sit down on the chair beside her. "Is there something wrong?"

"…I don't know. I love you Chelsea. I love you with all my heart... I just hope you love me the same way after what I'm about to say."

"You're scaring me, Malix."

"Chelsea, I am a dragon knight… a somewhat adventurer from another world. I came in search of an incredibly powerful magical item vital to the protection and preservation of that world."

"A…dragon knight?"

"A dragon is a creature from my world, but to explain to you what a dragon knight is would be very complicated. Anyway, I looked all over my world for so long to find the object I needed and although I learned so many things about the world…I couldn't find it.

"Then I learned through my expeditions about gateways to other worlds. And I realized that what I wanted may in fact be in another world, and no matter how much knowledge I gathered up, everything told me that all roads pass through Oturhaea. So, using the portals of my world and other worlds, I came here. But when I came through the portal…other things came along with me."

"What other things?" Chelsea asked.

"I was stupid. I shouldn't have come here from that other world. And I should have picked a better location to open the portal…it is all my fault."

"What happened?" Chelsea said rising from her chair.

"When I crossed into your world, these things came along with me. Creatures of the night…gargoyles. Powerful ones. And…Darren was there."

"No…."

"He didn't die by a hunting accident."

"…"

"He saw them attack me so he came…."

"He…no…."

"And they killed…"

"No!" she screamed.

"Chelsea…I'm sorry."

"Why did you lie to me?"

"Chelsea, I didn't think you wanted to hear…"

"You didn't think I wanted to hear that because of you, my husband died."

"He died a hero."

"My Darren wasn't a hero. Not once had he done anything heroic. But he was a husband…a perfect husband and he would have been a wonderful father, but because of your selfishness…"

"I was trying to protect my home," Malix interrupted.

"If you are such a protector, why did you need my sweet Darren to protect you? He's not a hero…but you are supposed to be a dragon knight. You pulled him into your world and now he is dead. And now, by being with me and my family…my daughter, you're pulling us in too."

"Chelsea please…"

"I want you to stay away from me and my family."

"Chelsea…please…no," Malix said in fear. He didn't want to be alone. He didn't want to be unloved. The scene was very quiet and very tense.

"I don't ever want to see you again," she said in a strange calmness while Sapphire had been crying in the background.

"Chelsea…I love you. I will always love you."

"Please…just go," she said as she picked up Sapphire and took her into the other room. Malix stood there for a moment as his whole world had come crashing down on him from the moment he had said 'I need to tell you something.' And now, his life – his perfect life of heaven had disappeared from him.

He was about to leave while in his heart hoping that Chelsea would run back into the room, embrace him and tell him that she had changed her mind. That it would all be alright. But although someone came into the room, it wasn't who he was hoping for.

Abigail walked into the harsh atmosphere. She did not apologize nor did she try to lighten the mood. "What was the object you have been searching for all this time?"

"It is called the Horn of Alexus. But if I'm honest with myself, what I was searching for…was this. A family," he said with regret as he opened the front door. "Goodbye Abigail. And please, say goodbye to Sapphire for me. I will miss all of you."

"Goodbye Malix."

The image faded away and the Gathering returned to the strange area just outside Oturhaea. They all remained quiet. Everything they had witnessed was so…sad. Simon had no idea such great pain had existed in Malix's heart. It wasn't fair. He was a good person. And Sapphire…what would he tell her?

"This was Malix's dream wasn't it. His memories of the past?" Simon asked after the moment of silence.

The owl landed in front of them and acknowledged Simon's revelation. "These images weren't meant to depress you, but to prepare you for what will come. But for now, you must return. You have been dreaming for a while, I think it's time to wake up," Alexus said as a bright light started shining. Jeanette finally remembered something.

"Wait a minute! Did Malix say the thing he had been searching for was called the Horn of Alexus?"

Alexus smiled as the bright flash shone over everything and a few seconds later, the Gathering opened their eyes.

1010101

Malix dropped to the ground as he felt his soul being ripped away from his body. It was like Soulspaun was sucking his soul and right now; Malix's eyes were turning black. He slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the red sphere and looked at it closely.

-So this is what death feels like- Malix thought to himself. –I wish I could die in your world, Chelsea. Then maybe I could be where you are. I could finally be with you and we could watch Sapphire together. That would be nice-

The immortal chipmunk had a soft smile as he held onto the sphere, but did not use it. His soul had been taken away from his body and all that was left was an empty immortal shell where the once brave dragon knight once inhabited.

1010101

A/N: So, I'm guessing this was a faster upload time than my last one lol. Anyway, this one was long but I hope you like it. And hopefully it was informative. I'm guessing you know who the next chapter is gonna be about. And although I would like to say that I like all three chipmunks equally, I can't because I LOVE ALVIN!

Til next time…


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